Tsumani in Japan: Up to 20 million tons of debris

The tsunami that hit the Japanese shores in March 2011 is still making the news several months after the incident. This time it is not about the number of death or damage caused but about the consequences.

According to scientists from the University of Hawaii, an estimated 5 million tons to 20 million tons of debris sucked into the ocean during Japan’s massive tsunami is due to hit U.S. shores sometime in 2014. Based on recent reports however, this floating city of rubbish, houses, vehicles, coolers, plastic, appliances, wood and even toxic waste is moving faster than first thought.

Nikolai Maximenko, a senior researcher at the International Pacific Research Center in Hawaii, stated that the debris from the tsunami will wash up at Midway Attol (an island midway between Japan and Hawaii) this winter. It will start washing up on Hawaiian shores in the winter or spring of 2013. And in the beginning of 2014, it will hit the West Coast, mostly Oregon and Washington. (California will most likely be spared.)

Source Netburn, D 2011, Los Angeles Times, L.A, USA

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