Print
E-Mail
tool name
closeHelping the world recycle, one e-mail at a time
Artondale student starts campaign to curb plastic litter
Nate Hulings
of the Gateway
Matt Danstrom wants people to know how important recycling is for the health and well being of the planet.
But he doesn’t just want you to be educated on the matter; he wants to know how you can be part of the solution.
Danstrom, a third-grader at Artondale Elementary School in Gig Harbor, recently began a community service project to educate the world about recycling and, more specifically, the dangers of throwing away plastic.
It started when the 8-year-old was on his way to a bus stop with his 10-year-old brother, Jack. The brothers saw a garbage truck, and Jack noticed recyclable materials were being thrown in with the trash.
That moment spurred Danstrom to focus his community service project — a requirement for his third-grade class — on recycling awareness.
As part of the project, Danstrom started an educational e-mail campaign about the Eastern Garbage Patch, a large section of the Pacific Ocean that is littered with plastic products.
And like any good researcher, Danstrom backs up his claims.
Danstrom packages two YouTube videos with his e-mail; both include commentary from Capt. Charles Moore, founder of the Algalita Marine Research Foundation.
Each video discusses the Eastern Garbage Patch, which covers 10 million square miles in the Pacific Ocean.
Because of ocean currents, garbage from North America, Hawaii and Asia come together to form a litter wasteland.
The videos explain that recent water samples from the garbage patch found six times more plastic than plankton.
It’s estimated that there is 3.5 million tons of trash that span the area — 80 percent of which is plastic.
The garbage is not merely unsightly. It also could be harming the marine population: The stomachs of birds and fish have been found to be full of plastic pieces.
The videos and images struck a nerve with Danstrom.
“I was kinda sad,” he said.
Danstrom and his family choose to practice what he preaches. They uses reusable water bottles, sandwich containers instead of plastic bags, and they put certain unused foods into yard waste.
The e-mails aren’t meant to be a passive experience for their readers.
Danstrom asks each person to respond with his or her location and how they are planning to recycle more often.
So far, the results have been international.
Danstrom keeps a globe at his home and marks every U.S. state and foreign country where his e-mail is sent.
In all, he’s sent the e-mails to 114 different addresses, in more than 19 states and 16 countries.
He’s received feedback from people in Mexico, Japan, England and Turkey.
One response said the family was dedicated to going non-plastic in their kitchen.
From picking up garbage on the beach to using less plastic in our personal lives, Danstrom’s hopes are for a worldwide change in how we consume and dispose of recyclables.
“Then, if we get them all around the world, it can be stopped,” he said. “Next thing you know, the world will be clean.”