Floating Garbage Island Off Roatan

There have been a few news items of a large mass of garbage floating off of Roatan. Has anyone been affected by this on a recent cruise in the western Caribbean?

There have been a few news items of a large mass of garbage floating off of Roatan. Has anyone been affected by this on a recent cruise in the western Caribbean?

will be in Roatan this coming week: hope it hasn't affectd everything. I am sure it hasn't. Remember lots of news reports are for shock purposed and blown a bit out of reality.

Unfortunately, fairly common around the world. Just out of sight offshore the "world renowned" Copacabana beach is a permanent "belt" of floating garbage.

Unfortunately, fairly common around the world. Just out of sight offshore the "world renowned" Copacabana beach is a permanent "belt" of floating garbage.

Wow, good to know. I'll be in Rio in February. Belize City had a remarkable amount of garbage on its beaches; it was shocking to see. I wish this would become a higher priority globally. Between the garbage and the increasing acidification of the oceans, we are in for a real catastrophe.

I can't remember which Caribbean port it was now, but several years ago while riding a tour bus along the beach area and seawall, the amount of garbage washed up and stacked up was absolutely unbelievable. Unfortunately, it was the highlight of my memories of that port. So yes, lots of trash in the Caribbean. These frequently extremely poor countries/communities, the residents are interested in just surviving another day. Trash disposal and community beatification are not high on their list of priorities.

There have been a few news items of a large mass of garbage floating off of Roatan. Has anyone been affected by this on a recent cruise in the western Caribbean?

are you sure it's not gators?

If you have FB, check out Roatan Marine Park. They are on the front line of this news, not only talking about it, but taking action as well

From their page -

Recently published photos of a “sea of trash” on Roatan have gone viral in the media. While these images have brought much needed attention to the global garbage crisis that our oceans are currently experiencing, the story behind these photos has not been accurately explained. These photos were taken after major rain and weather events in the region. The floating “raft” of trash was observed offshore and was not in fact choking our beaches and shoreline as many of the articles have described. Unfortunately the same currents that brought this floating raft of trash into our waters, have now taken it out to sea or to another unlucky location. Our island paradise is still a beautiful Caribbean destination, and these images should not deter anyone from visiting and appreciating the abundance of natural resources Roatan offers. Since the photos were taken we have had over 1 million tourists visit our island and have been continually voted as top caribbean travel destination. The only thing these images should deter or reduce is our use of plastics. The important thing is to act responsibly and NOW, to reduce your single use plastic. Our oceans are filling up with trash. You can help us protect this paradise. Let’s bring more alternatives to single use plastic

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I was in Roatan last week and saw 3 or 4 small pieces of plastic while cruising to and from the port. I noticed more garbage at the side of the road on our excursion. I was surprised we didn't see more plastic in the ocean. The cruise ship must be avoiding the garbage or it has floated away from the path of the cruise ship.

I noticed St. Thomas was full of garbage last spring, pre hurricane. It wasn't the lovely island I remember. Garbage on the roadways and very run down even 2-3 blocks away from the port. I think there's a lot more garbage out there than we realize and at this point it's a shell game hiding it from the cruise passengers. Perhaps the hurricane clean up will include the horrible trash situation on St. Thomas.