The Secret Eventually Revealed
In 2019, the cat was finally let out of the bag when the source of the plastic Garfield phones became public knowledge.
Source: Facebook
It so happened that the phones were part of a lost shipping container that had been washed up on the shore for several decades. However, the container had remained hidden from public sight because it was stuck in an isolated area of Brittany’s Coast.
How the Anti-Litter Campaign Started
After a while of non-stop pollution of Brittany’s beaches with plastics, a group called the Ar Vilantsou decided to start an anti-litter campaign. The team comprised local volunteers who were passionate about having clean beaches in Brittany.
Source: Atlas Obscura
The campaign team used social media to spread information about the dangers of polluting the coastal waters and beaches. They took an extra step by collecting fragments of the Garfield plastic phones and posting pictures of the mess online.
Why Should We Be Concerned About Marine Pollution?
Plastic pollution has been a serious challenge in the water bodies of the world in recent years. Since the advent of consumer products and the popularity of plastic packaging, water bodies have borne the brunt of plastic pollution.
Source: Flickr
Several environmentalists and marine conservationists have instituted initiatives to educate people about the implication of plastic materials finding their way into water bodies. Besides beaches getting littered, plastic poses a huge threat to aquatic animals.
Indirectly Feeding Yourself Plastic
Marine researchers have established that throwing plastic way into the sea and not cleaning up plastic pollutants is like serving ourselves a plate of prosthetic food.
Source: Wikimedia Commons
Basically, what this means is that plastic debris in the water bodies gets carried around by ocean currents. In the process, some of these items are nibbled upon by aquatic animals and birds and come in a full cycle before finding their way back to our meals.
A Patriotic Farmer Comes Forward
After the Ar Vilantsou campaign had gone on for a while, a local farmer in Brittany—Rene Morvan— reached out to them. It turns out that the first time Morvan saw those Garfield phones was in the 1980s.
Source: Facebook
He and a couple of other people traced the trail of plastic fragments and found it to be coming from a hidden cove in the rocks. The container conveying the plastic had gotten stuck underneath the rocks and had been dispersing its content ever since.
The Campaign Was a Success
Members of the Ar Vilantsou Anti-Litter campaign and journalists from France Info followed Morvan to the location of the lost container.
Source: YouTube
Claire Simonin-Le Meur, a member of Ar Vilantsou, acknowledged that the container was stuck and inaccessible. However, it was a good development that they could identify the source of the plastics that had plagued Brittany beaches for several years. So, with that knowledge, they can get proactive about evacuating the debris.
Rid Water Bodies of Debris That Are Not Biodegradable
No one would have bothered about plastics in water bodies but for their inability to biodegrade. That word means that plastics do not decompose easily. In fact, some plastics take centuries before they can be broken down.
Source: Doug Helton
Plastics, like greenhouse gases, are not the only environmental menace we have on our hands; there are cases of mid-sea oil spillages that devastate the aquatic ecosystem. Overall, there are several initiatives being instituted to rid the planet of these deadly pollutants.
Another Strange Object On a Japanese Beach
Similar to the Garfield phones washed up on the beaches of Brittany, a similar case has been recently reported in Japan.
Source: Twitter
A local woman visiting the Hamamatsu beach in Japan was the first to spot the spherical object. She did well to notify the authorities about the strange object. Consequently, the beach was sealed off from public access and an anti-bomb squad was dispatched to the scene.
Sophistication of Military Espionage and Warfare
Governments are becoming careful with how they address these kind of reports involving mysterious objects. Before investigation, the Garfield phones on the Brittany beach and the metallic ball on the Hamamatsu beach could have been some sort of new weapon.
Source: Instagram
In fact, since the shooting down of a Japanese spy balloon over United States territory, the UK has reviewed its security apparatus for responding to threats.