Marine Debris
Save Our Oceans!
Marine Litter
Marine debris, or marine litter, is human waste that has either deliberately or accidentally been released into an ocean, sea, lake, or waterway.
Marine Debris
HUMAN THREATS TO Marine Life AND BENEFITS
Pollution from human activities has a major impact on the world’s marine ecosystems. Marine Debris can kill or injure wildlife through ingestion and entanglement. More than one million birds and 100,000 marine mammals die each year from becoming entangled in or ingesting this litter. There is not any benefits to Marine Debris, as the threats to all ocean life are too high. Not only is it a threat to marine life, it is a threat to us because when people throw trash into the ocean they kill animals that we consume and that some people live off. Marine Debris will soon end up taking over the oceans if people don't start acting now.
Prevention
- NOAA's Marine Debris Program: operates under the Marine Debris Research, Prevention and Reduction Act of 2006. Its mission is to “investigate and solve the problems that stem from marine debris through research, prevention and reduction activities, in order to protect and conserve our nation’s marine environment and ensure navigation safety”. The program also maintains a Marine Debris Blog that serves as a platform for education and a place for suggesting and collecting new ideas to combat marine debris.
- EPA's Marine Debris Prevention Program: operates under ocean-based laws, including the 2006 Marine Debris Act, the Marine Plastic Pollution Research and Control Act, the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act and the Shore Protection Act, as well as a number of land-based mandates. This program has developed research and monitoring initiatives, and many prevention, control and reduction measures.
- Interagency Marine Debris Coordinating Committee: A multi-agency collaboration responsible for developing and recommending comprehensive and multidisciplinary approaches to reduce the sources and impacts of marine debris on the nation’s resources.
- Coastal Cleanup Day: Every year, on the third Saturday in September, people join together at sites all over California to take part in the State's largest volunteer event, California Coastal Cleanup Day. In 2015, more than 68,000 volunteers removed nearly 1,143,000 pounds of trash and recyclables from California's beaches, lakes, and waterways.
Sources
Marine Litter: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_debris"
Environmental Impact: "http://thankyouocean.org/threats/marine-debris/#whyismarinedebrisaproblem"
Prevention: "http://thankyouocean.org/threats/marine-debris/#whatisthefederalgovernmentdoing" "http://www.coastal.ca.gov/publiced/ccd/about.html"
Environmental Impact: "http://thankyouocean.org/threats/marine-debris/#whyismarinedebrisaproblem"
Prevention: "http://thankyouocean.org/threats/marine-debris/#whatisthefederalgovernmentdoing" "http://www.coastal.ca.gov/publiced/ccd/about.html"