Marine Debris on Mainland & Channel Islands Beaches
Channel: Sean Anderson
Date: 2016-10-06

The Santa Barbara Channel is home to a variety of factors fostering marine debris accumulation.  We documented the consistent presence of marine debris along both undeveloped coastlines on the Channel Islands of Santa Rosa and Santa Cruz Islands and on mainland beaches in Ventura County, California.  Santa Rosa Island beaches were part of a 1989-1994 marine debris survey performed by the Channel Islands National Park, allowing us to identify historical changes over the last three decades. 

Derelict fishing gear now makes up a much higher proportion of debris found on Santa Rosa Island than in 1989-1993.
Seasonal marine debris accumulation rates were not the same across all surveyed beaches on the mainland.  Winter storms only increased the amount of debris found on beaches proximate to rivers.  There were substantial differences in the composition of mainland and island debris.  Mainland beach debris was dominated by “disposable” items from our modern lifestyles: single use plastics, cigarette butts, and plastic packaging.  Island marine debris was dominated by derelict fishing gear and plastic fragments.

This undergraduate research was performed as part of an Environmental Science and Resource Management senior capstone project by Michaela Miller.  It is one component of our larger CSU Channel Islands effort to understand the dynamics and health of sandy beach ecosystems along the California coast.