72 days ago Ben left Hawai’i with the aim of swimming 300NM through The Great Pacific Garbage Patch to represent the 300 million tonnes of plastic produced world wide each year. ⠀
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This week Ben achieved this incredible feat crossing the line with his support crew right by his side. Ironically, the line was not metaphoric as the crew found this piece of floating debris to officially mark the occasion.⠀
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During his long hours in the water, Ben has experienced a variety of marine life, from sperm whales, dolphins to turtles and plenty of mahi mahi. More prominent than the wildlife, sadly, is the marine trash they found on a daily basis. ⠀
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@thevortexswim crew have spotted over 3,700 pieces of floating debris, and collected over 45,000 fragments of microplastics, logging an increase of 1,000% in the concentration of plastics in The Vortex compared to other areas of the Pacific Ocean. This Labor Day weekend, Ben Lecomte swims into San Francisco after 80 days at sea. Having completed his challenge, he continues his on land mission of raising awareness of plastic pollution. ⠀
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On the return to shore, Ben will swim under the Golden Gate Bridge and arrive to Crissy Field East Beach on Saturday, 31st August at 11am. Everyone is encouraged to welcome Ben and crew ashore, followed by an open to the public event at Little Marina Green, complete with food trucks, a meet & greet and outdoor exhibition of some of the trash collected by the expedition crew and representation of the startling situation in our oceans. ⠀
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“I reached my goal of swimming 300 nautical miles, but the real challenge is now, to keep the awareness high and for all of us to tackle plastic pollution. My crew and I will keep exploring and I will keep swimming until we reach San Francisco,” says Ben from the support boat, I am Ocean. “This expedition ends, but our mission continues on land to inspire people and question our relationship with plastic. There is no silver bullet; we need everyone to be part of the solution, for our oceans and for our future.” - Ben Lecomte⠀
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#movetonatural #thevortexswim