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    Marine Debris 4 PP Factsheet

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    Fitri Ayu Azhari
    Marine debris from both land and sea sources is a major global environmental issue. Plastic makes up about three-quarters of debris found along Australian coastlines. CSIRO research has found debris is more concentrated near urban areas and plastic densities in coastal and offshore waters can range from a few thousand to over 40,000 pieces per square kilometer. This debris negatively impacts wildlife through entanglement and ingestion, with about one third of marine turtles and nearly half of all seabird species ingesting debris globally. Young animals are particularly vulnerable. CSIRO research aims to identify debris sources and solutions to prevent debris from entering oceans to mitigate harmful wildlife impacts.

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    Marine Debris 4 PP Factsheet

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    Fitri Ayu Azhari
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    Marine debris from both land and sea sources is a major global environmental issue. Plastic makes up about three-quarters of debris found along Australian coastlines. CSIRO research has found debris is more concentrated near urban areas and plastic densities in coastal and offshore waters can range from a few thousand to over 40,000 pieces per square kilometer. This debris negatively impacts wildlife through entanglement and ingestion, with about one third of marine turtles and nearly half of all seabird species ingesting debris globally. Young animals are particularly vulnerable. CSIRO research aims to identify debris sources and solutions to prevent debris from entering oceans to mitigate harmful wildlife impacts.

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    Marine debris from both land and sea sources is a major global environmental issue. Plastic makes up about three-quarters of debris found along Australian coastlines. CSIRO research has found debris is more concentrated near urban areas and plastic densities in coastal and offshore waters can range from a few thousand to over 40,000 pieces per square kilometer. This debris negatively impacts wildlife through entanglement and ingestion, with about one third of marine turtles and nearly half of all seabird species ingesting debris globally. Young animals are particularly vulnerable. CSIRO research aims to identify debris sources and solutions to prevent debris from entering oceans to mitigate harmful wildlife impacts.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    31 views4 pages

    Marine Debris 4 PP Factsheet

    Uploaded by

    Fitri Ayu Azhari
    Marine debris from both land and sea sources is a major global environmental issue. Plastic makes up about three-quarters of debris found along Australian coastlines. CSIRO research has found debris is more concentrated near urban areas and plastic densities in coastal and offshore waters can range from a few thousand to over 40,000 pieces per square kilometer. This debris negatively impacts wildlife through entanglement and ingestion, with about one third of marine turtles and nearly half of all seabird species ingesting debris globally. Young animals are particularly vulnerable. CSIRO research aims to identify debris sources and solutions to prevent debris from entering oceans to mitigate harmful wildlife impacts.

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    of 4

    Oceans and Atmosphere Flagship

    www.csiro.au

    Marine debris: Sources, distribution and fate of plastic


    and other refuse – and its impact on ocean and coastal
    wildlife
    Marine debris is a globally recognised environmental issue of increasing
    concern
    Marine ecosystems worldwide are affected by human-made refuse, much of which is plastic.
    Marine debris comes from both land and sea-based sources and can travel immense distances. It
    can pose a navigation hazard, smother coral reefs, transport invasive species and negatively affect
    tourism. It also injures and kills wildlife, has the potential to transport chemical contaminants, and
    may pose a threat to human health.
    CSIRO has completed a survey of sites approximately every 100 km along the Australian coastline.
    Parts of this research engaged with thousands of students, teachers and Shell employees and has
    reached more than one million Australians, helping to educate them about, and increase their
    understanding of, the problems of marine debris.

    What is marine debris?


    Marine debris is defined as any persistent solid material that is manufactured or processed and
    directly or indirectly, intentionally or unintentionally, disposed of or abandoned into the marine
    environment.
    Marine debris includes consumer items such as glass or plastic bottles, cans, bags, balloons,
    rubber, metal, fibreglass, cigarettes, and other manufactured materials that end up in the ocean
    and along the coast.
    It also includes fishing gear such as line, ropes, hooks, buoys and other materials lost on or near
    land, or intentionally or unintentionally discarded at sea.

    Did you know


    CSIRO has developed an online national marine debris database where you can contribute data
    you collect about litter at your local beach. Together, we can contribute to the improved
    understanding of the types, amounts and sources of debris that arrives on Australia’s coastline.
    See www.cmar.csiro.au/marine-debris

    What does CSIRO’s research tell us?


    CSIRO surveyed coastal sites approximately every 100 km around the continent of Australia.
    This body of work represents the largest scale, integrated, rigorous data to have been collected
    anywhere in the world aimed at addressing the marine debris issue.
    1. What are the sources, distribution, and ultimate fate of marine debris?
    We found that within Australia, approximately three-quarters of the rubbish along the coast is
    plastic. Most is from Australian sources, not from overseas, with debris concentrated near urban
    centres. In coastal and offshore waters, most floating debris is plastic. The density of plastic ranges
    from a few thousand pieces of plastic per square kilometre to more than 40,000 pieces of plastic
    per square kilometre. Debris is more highly concentrated around major cities, suggesting
    local sources.

    2. What is the exposure of marine wildlife to debris?


    Litter impacts wildlife directly through entanglement and ingestion and indirectly through
    chemical affects. As the quantity of debris increases in the marine environment, so does the
    likelihood of impacts from debris to marine animals. Plastic production rates are intensifying, and
    the volume of refuse humans release into marine systems is growing at an exponential rate. Even
    toothpaste and personal care products can have plastic microbeads in them. These microplastics
    can be mistakenly eaten by a range of marine species.

    3. Why do animals ingest debris, and what is the effect on marine wildlife
    populations?
    Globally, approximately one third of marine turtles have likely ingested debris, and this has
    increased since plastic production began in the 1950s. Most items eaten by turtles are plastic and
    positively buoyant. Smaller oceanic turtles are more likely to ingest debris than coastal foragers;
    herbivores are more likely to ingest debris than carnivorous species; oceanic leatherback turtles
    and green turtles are at the greatest risk of ingested marine debris effects; and benthic turtles
    show a strong selectivity for soft, clear plastic that resembles natural prey such as jellyfish.
    Around the world, nearly half of all seabird species are likely to ingest debris. Birds eat everything
    from balloons to glow sticks, industrial plastic pellets, hard bits of plastic, foam, metal hooks and
    fishing line. CSIRO researchers and colleagues found that 43 per cent of short-tailed shearwaters
    have plastic in their gut. Young birds were more likely to ingest debris and ate more pieces
    of debris than adult birds. A global hotspot for seabird impacts exists in the Tasman Sea south of
    Australia. CSIRO predicts that plastics ingestion in seabirds may reach 95 per cent of all species by
    2050, taking into account the steady increase of plastics production.

    4. What is the effect on marine wildlife populations that become entangled


    by debris?
    Seabirds, turtles, whales, dolphins, dugongs, fish, crabs and crocodiles and numerous other
    species are killed and maimed through entanglement. We estimate that between 5,000 and
    15,000 turtles have been killed in the Gulf of Carpentaria after becoming ensnared by derelict
    fishing nets, mostly originating from overseas. For pinnipeds in Victoria, the majority of seal
    entanglements involved plastic twine or rope, and seals become entangled in green items more
    than in any other colour. In general, young seals are entangled in greater numbers than adults.

    What can be done?


    By garnering the information needed to identify sources and hotspots of debris, we can better
    develop effective solutions to tackle marine debris.
    The most effective way to reduce and mitigate the harmful effects of marine debris is to prevent it
    from entering the marine environment in the first place. This requires incorporating understanding
    of debris into local, regional and national decision‑making; improved waste management efforts;
    education and outreach activities; development of technology solutions; anti-dumping campaigns;
    reducing losses of fishing gear at sea; and incentives to reduce debris, such as South Australia’s
    container deposit scheme (which has reduced the number of beverage containers, the dominant
    plastic item in the environment, by a factor 3).
    Working together, scientists, industry, coastal managers and citizen scientists can make significant
    strides to reduce marine debris impacts in coastal areas and in the marine environment.

    Acknowledgements
    The research was co-funded by Shell Australia’s National Social Investment Program and CSIRO’s
    Oceans and Atmosphere Flagship. TeachWild is an innovative national partnership between
    Earthwatch, CSIRO and Founding Partner Shell Australia to gather the data needed to bridge the
    information gap and tackle the global issue of marine debris.

    Publications
    Hardety, BD, C Wilcox, TJ Lawson, M Lansdell and T van der Velde. 2014. Understanding the
    effects of marine debris on wildlife. Final report to Earthwatch Australia.
    Hardesty, BD, D Holdsworth, A Revill and C Wilcox. 2014. A biochemical approach for identifying
    plastics exposure in live wildlife. In press, Methods in Ecology and Evolution.
    Vegter A, M Barletta, C Beck, J Borrero, H Burton, M Campbell, M Eriksen, C Eriksson, A Estrades, K
    Gilardi, BD Hardesty, J Assunção I do Sul, J Lavers, B Lazar, L Lebreton, WJ Nichols, E Ramirez
    Llodra, C Ribic, PG Ryan, Q Schuyler, SDA Smith, H Takada, K Townsend, C Wabnitz, C Wilcox, L
    Young, M Hamann. 2014. Global research priorities for the management and mitigation of plastic
    pollution on marine wildlife. In press Endangered Species Research.
    Acampora, H, Q Schuyler, K Townsend and BD Hardesty. 2014. Comparing plastic ingestion
    between juvenile and adult stranded Short-tailed Shearwaters (Puffinus tenuirostris) in Eastern
    Australia. Marine Pollution Bulletin. DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2013.11.009.
    Reisser J, J Shaw, G Hallegraeff, M Proietti, D Barnes, M Thums, C Wilcox, BD Hardesty and C
    Pattiaratchi. 2014. Millimeter-sized marine plastics: a new pelagic habitat for microorganisms
    and invertebrates. PLoS ONE 9(6): e100289. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0100289.
    Schuyler, Q, K Townsend, C Wilcox, BD Hardesty and J Marshall. 2014. Marine debris through a
    turtle‑eyed view. BMC Ecology. http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6785/14/14.

    Wilcox C, G Heathcote, J Goldberg, R Gunn, D Peel and BD Hardesty. 2014. Understanding the
    sources, drivers and impacts of abandoned, lost and discarded fishing gear in northern Australia.
    Conservation Biology. DOI: 10.1111/cobi.12355.
    Schuyler, Q, BD Hardesty, C. Wilcox and K Townsend. 2014. A global analysis of anthropogenic
    debris ingestion by sea turtles. Conservation Biology. 28:129‑139. DOI: 10.1111/cobi.12126.

    Hardesty BD and C Wilcox. 31 Jan 2013. Ghostnets fish on: marine rubbish threatens northern
    Australian turtles. The Conversation http://theconversation.edu.au/ghostnets-fish-on-marine-
    rubbish-threatens-northern-australian-turtles-11585.
    Reisser J, J Shaw, C Wilcox, BD Hardesty, M Proietti, M Thums, C Pattiaratchi. 2013. Marine plastic
    pollution in waters around Australia: characteristics, concentrations and pathways. PLoS One
    8(11): http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0080466.
    Wilcox, C, BD Hardesty, R Sharples, DA Griffin, TJ Lawson and R Gunn. 2013. Ghost net impacts on
    globally threatened turtles, a spatial risk analysis for northern Australia. Conservation Letters.
    DOI: 10.1111/conl.12001.
    Schuyler, Q, K Townsend, BD Hardesty and C Wilcox. 2012. To eat or not to eat: debris selectivity
    by marine turtles. PLoS One 7(7): e40884. DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0040884.
    Hardesty BD and C Wilcox. 2011. Marine debris: biodiversity impacts and potential solutions. The
    Conversation http://theconversation.edu.au/marine-debris-biodiversity-impacts-and-potential-
    solutions-2131.
    Hardesty BD and C Wilcox. 2011. Understanding the types, sources and at-sea distribution of
    marine debris in Australian Waters. Final report to the Department of Sustainability,
    Environment, Water, Health, Population and Communities.
    http://www.environment.gov.au/coasts/pollution/marine-debris/publications/pubs/marine-
    debris-sources.pdf.

    For further information


    Oceans and Atmosphere Flagship
    www.csiro.au/marine-debris
    Britta Denise Hardesty
    t +61 3 6232 5276
    e [email protected]

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