LSU College of the Coast & Environment Professor Selected as Finalist by National Geographic
08/08/2019
LSU College of the Coast & Environment Professor Mark Benfield flies a drone to survey, map and visually capture the amount of plastic pollution on remote Louisiana beaches as part of a proposed project for the National Geographic and Sky Ocean Ventures' Ocean Plastic Innovation Challenge. Benfield's team is one of the 24 worldwide finalists competing for research funding to solve the problem of plastic pollution. Photo Credit: Mark Benfield, LSU
BATON ROUGE – LSU Department of Oceanography & Coastal Sciences Professor Mark Benfield
is leading a research team that has been selected as one of the 24 finalists from
around the world competing in the National Geographic and Sky Ocean Ventures’ Ocean Plastic Innovation Challenge. The LSU team was selected as one of the 24 finalists from 291 teams that submitted
strategies to solve the problem of plastic pollution.
“This is a problem that can definitely be improved upon through individual actions.
Recycle the plastic that you can. Substitute reusable items for single use plastics,”
Benfield said.
His team is one of the finalists from 13 different countries competing for a share
of a total of $1.5 million in awards and investments to solve this problem. Working
with his colleague LSU Department of Oceanography & Coastal Sciences Assistant Professor
Junhong Liang and his graduate student Kerrin Toner, Benfield is leading the LSU Remote
Plastic Assessment Group, which uses drones to survey, map and visually capture the
amount of plastic debris on Elmer’s Island and remote beaches off Terrebonne Bay in
Louisiana.
High concentrations of plastic in the northern Gulf of Mexico originally sparked Benfield’s
concern for plastics in 2015. Last fall, Benfield participated in a beach cleanup
organized by the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program at Elmer’s Island,
La.
“I was shocked by how much debris was on the beach,” he said. “I decided that a drone
would be a great way to survey the distribution and types of plastic on Elmer’s Island.”
His group collected data and converted the images into maps that clearly demonstrated
the magnitude of plastic, forming the blueprint for their entry into the competition.
“The population density along the Gulf Coast is relatively low, but the quantity of
plastic trash on Elmer’s Island and other Louisiana beaches is very high. Where is
it coming from? The answer appears to be the 100 million people who live in the Mississippi
drainage basin,” he said.
While the Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America, the amount
of plastic transported into the Gulf by this river is largely unknown. Benfield said
that once plastic trash is disposed into the Gulf, it’s easily forgotten. He said
one of the most shocking discoveries he’s found through this project is evidence that
the Mississippi, a nationwide cultural treasure, has been allowed to become “a plastic
sewer.”
When it comes to the impact in Louisiana, Benfield said plastic waste affects both
the top and the bottom of the food chain. Fish found in Louisiana estuaries often
have plastic in their stomachs, which can carry organic pollutants. Animals that eat
these plastics also acquire these toxins, which only increase in concentration as
they move up the food chain.
“We pride our state as being the Sportman’s Paradise. We need to take steps to keep
this plastic waste out of our marine communities,” Benfield said.
Benfield is hopeful that this project will assist cleanup efforts in high-impact areas
by identifying the times of year that are particularly prone to high deposition of
plastic and that its images can shed some light on the source of the pollution.
The LSU team will pitch their project to the judges at the National Geographic headquarters
in Washington, D.C., and the winners will be announced in December. They are competing
for a share of the $500,000 prize purse, as well as a portion of $1 million in investments
from Sky Ocean Ventures.
The Ocean Plastic Innovation Challenge is a key component of National Geographic’s
“Planet or Plastic?” initiative, a global effort to significantly reduce the amount of single-use plastic
that reaches the ocean by raising awareness, elevating science and education, advancing
innovation and inspiring action.
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Contact Alison Satake
LSU Media Relations
225-578-3870
asatake@lsu.edu
Christine Wendling
LSU College of the Coast & Environment
225-578-4984
christinew@lsu.edu