FY 14 NOAA Marine Debris Program

Accomplishments Report
This spring, I had an opportunity to visit a Marine Debris 

Program partner who was leading beach cleanups in Florida’s 

Biscayne National Park. She told me a piece of good news: after 

the cleanups started, the park’s natural resource managers 

noticed an increase in sea turtle nesting in the area. After my 

initial excitement, I realized that this story was just one more 

example of what we’ve seen in the world of marine debris this 

year: We are making progress. We have forward momentum. 

That’s really the only way to describe what is happening in our 

program and in the marine debris community: momentum. So 

many of our project partners have worked hard and achieved 

results. The numbers rolling in from removal eforts nationwide 

are impressive - thousands of pounds, by our count. Thousands 

of people, young and old, have learned about how they can 

prevent marine debris through education and outreach projects. 

We brought people together through workshops and forged 

state action plans. We connected with new groups doing all they 

can to combat this problem.

Many of our research collaborations also culminated this year, 

adding to our understanding of how marine debris impacts 

our ocean and Great Lakes. We learned more about how litter 

afects beachgoers’ economic welfare and the state of science on 

entanglement and ingestion. We also noticed a tangible increase 

in the amount of interest and research published worldwide on 

this issue, which means the forward momentum is global. 

While we still have a great deal of work to do to fx this very 

serious problem, I am more impressed each year by the level 

of efort going toward solutions. With that, I am very proud to 

present the NOAA Marine Debris Program’s accomplishments 

from 2014.

Nancy Wallace, 

Director, NOAA Marine Debris Program
Table of Contents

Letter from the Director 2

2014 By the Numbers 5

Cleaning up America’s Backyard 6

Developing Ocean Stewards 14

Regional Planning Eforts 19

State of Marine Debris Science 20

Japan Tsunami Marine Debris 22

Sandy 23

Acknowledgements 24
THE NOAA MARINE DEBRIS PROGRAM 

ENVISIONS THE GLOBAL OCEAN 

AND ITS COASTS, USERS, AND 

INHABITANTS FREE FROM THE 

IMPACTS OF MARINE DEBRIS. OUR 

MISSION IS TO INVESTIGATE AND 

SOLVE THE PROBLEMS THAT STEM 

FROM MARINE DEBRIS, IN ORDER 

TO PROTECT AND CONSERVE OUR 

NATION’S MARINE ENVIRONMENT, 

NATURAL RESOURCES, INDUSTRIES, 

ECONOMY, AND PEOPLE.
12,628 number 

of students reached

168 number 

of teachers reached

1 number 

of regional plans 

implemented

247,188 number 

of pounds removed

2014 By the Numbers
The Hawai‘i Wildlife Fund (HWF) 

removed marine debris from 

shorelines of Hawai‘i, focusing 

on the Ka‘u coast. Since 2012, 

HWF has conducted more than 

43 marine debris cleanup 

events removing nearly

23 metric tons with 1,413 

volunteers. 

HWF conducted regular 

research activities and beach 

cleanups at Ka‘ehu on the 

fourth Sunday of every month.

Tugidak Island is a critical 

habitat area in Alaska’s Kodiak 

Archipelago. The Island Trails 

Network removed 60,000 pounds

of debris from 16.8 miles of 

Tugidak’s southeast coast over the 

42-day feld season.

Volunteers camped for two weeks 

on Tugidak Island to conduct the 

cleanup.

Hawai’i Alaska

Trash we fnd in our ocean and Great Lakes can range from a tiny piece of weathered plastic to a 200 

pound derelict net that was once used for salmon fshing. One solution to restoring our treasured 

coastal waters is removing debris altogether. Over the past year, we supported projects that mitigate 

impacts and address the damage marine debris has caused to local habitats such as salt marshes and 

sea turtle nesting grounds, as well as bays and estuaries. 

Here is a snapshot of our project accomplishments:

Cleaning up America’s Backyard

Hawai’i Wildlife Fund volunteers removed debris from Ka’u coast. 

A volunteer hauls debris onto a cart in Tugidak, Alaska.
Hofstra University removed 

debris from one of the last 

remaining natural salt marshes 

in Nassau County, New York. This 

year, they held two clean-ups 

resulting in more than 11 tons

of debris, including wood and 

plastic, removed from the marsh. 

The clean-ups involved 132 

volunteers from the community 

giving 557 hours of service, 

including students from Hofstra 

University, Adelphi University, 

Long Beach High School, and 

members of the All Hands 

Volunteers.

New York

Cleanup volunteers help haul away a large piece of wood debris 

from Lido Beach in Nassau County, New York. 
The Northwest Straits 

Foundation continued its 

longstanding eforts to remove 

derelict fshing nets from Puget 

Sound and surrounding marine 

waters. This year they removed

67 nets, which contained 

nearly 11,700 entangled 

animals.

Project leads also conducted 

outreach to seven Indian Tribes 

to explore ways to reduce 

fshing net loss and increase 

lost net reporting. 

Washington State

Staf from the Northwest Straits Foundation retrieve a derelict 

fshing net from the Puget Sound.
The Quinault Indian Nation 

removed 67 nets from the 

Chehalis River, 150 nets from the 

Quinault River, and 85 pilings

from Grays Harbor. The removal 

of derelict fshing nets eliminated 

the risk that these nets could 

wash into the ocean during river 

fooding.

The project developed best 

management practices and 

provided net reporting tools, 

including GPS-enabled cameras, 

for Quinault fshers. A committee 

will also map the river for 

obstacles that cause net loss.

The Wiyot Tribe of the Humboldt 

Bay region removed 3 metric 

tons of large marine debris 

on and around Indian Island, a 

National Historic Landmark. Forty 

volunteers participated in two 

cleanup events. 

Indian Island is known for its 

religious and cultural signifcance 

to the Wiyot Tribe and is the 

site of the Wiyot World Renewal 

Ceremony. 

Washington State California

Remnants of old foating dock debris stand scattered 

throughout Humboldt Bay at Indian Island. 

Derelict fshing gear removal from the Chehalis River.
Dog River is a seven-mile river 

located on the northwest side 

of Mobile Bay. The Dauphin 

Island Sea Lab removed 26 

derelict vessels and restored 

damaged seagrass habitat at 

two sites.

Project leads created 

educational road signage 

on abandoned and derelict 

vessels.

Alabama

Derelict vessels removed from Dog River Marsh.
The North Carolina Coastal 

Federation implemented a 

pilot program working with 

commercial fshermen to 

remove derelict crab pots and 

repurpose them to create an 

artifcial oyster reef. This year 

they recycled 365 pots into 

700 feet of reef and cleaned 

up a total of 2.5 tons of debris.

Project leads employed 17 

local fshermen on nine boats 

to work on this project. 

North Carolina

A fsherman retrieves a derelict crab pot of the North 

Carolina coastline. 
Condado Lagoon is one of 

two natural lagoons in Puerto 

Rico. The Corporation for The 

Conservation of The San Juan 

Bay Estuary removed 1,153 

pounds of litter. 

The team will produce two 

documentaries about the 

project; one will focus on the 

general marine debris issue and 

the other will take a closer looks 

at underwater cleanups.

Puerto Rico

More than 100 volunteers with 

the Coastal Cleanup Corporation 

removed 3 tons of plastics, 

glass, foamed plastic, rubber and 

discarded fshing gear from sea 

turtle nesting sites within Biscayne 

National Park. They also collected 

113 lobster/crab trap parts and 

178 lobster/crab trap styrofoam 

buoys.

Biscayne National Park resource 

managers saw a signifcant 

increase in sea turtle nesting at 

Elliott Key after the cleanups.

Florida

Coastal Cleanup Corporation volunteers assess marine debris 

collected from Biscayne National Park. 

Volunteers sift through marine debris collected from a beach 

cleanup. 
NOAA Marine Debris Program 

Projects by the Numbers:

the number of pounds Save Our Shores removed from 

Panther Beach in CA.

the weight in pounds of a buoy from Japan that now sits at 

Port Allen in Oahu, Hawaii as a memorial to those lost during 

the 2011 tsunami. 

the number of students ages 2-18 who came out to Na Kama 

Kai’s cleanups and educational events at Waimanalo Beach 

Park, Oahu, Hawaii.

the number of beaches Washington CoastSavers cleaned 

along the state’s outer coast.

the number of rapid response cleanups and surveys Oregon 

Surfrider conducted in sensitive areas through volunteerbased teams.

1268

250

85

40

17

A volunteer holds a weathered balloon found during a beach 

cleanup. 
For the past year, our education and outreach partners across the country have inspired thousands 

of people of all ages to be better ocean stewards. They have carried the message that prevention

is key to solving the marine debris problem through Marine Debris Program-funded projects such 

as museum exhibits, curriculum development, marine debris challenges and informal curriculum, 

outreach to teens, teacher workshops, dockside education, hands-on cleanups and science for 

children. 

Here is a snapshot of project accomplishments in 2014: 

Developing Ocean Stewards

Oregon State University created 

a marine debris curriculum and 

hands-on activities for Oregon’s 

4th-12th grade students and 

introduced it to 20 educators at 

a teacher workshop. More than 

1,600 of their students have 

benefted from the curriculum 

and engaged in marine debris 

education. 

10 teachers led students on 

marine debris cleanups as part of 

the curriculum.

University of Georgia’s (UGA)

Project SORT led 16 educators

in curriculum and activity 

development, engaged 337 

middle and high school 

students in marine debris 

classroom activities, surveys and 

cleanups, and provided teachers 

an opportunity to integrate the 

activities into classrooms. 

UGA placed 3 exhibits at marine 

science centers in Georgia, 

featuring diferent plastics 

collected in the area. 

Ocean Conservancy (OC) created 

hands-on marine debris learning 

activities as part of a nationwide 

Talking Trash and Taking Action 

campaign to advance marine 

debris solutions. They reached 

nearly 800 youth, including 425 

in underserved communities and 

1,285 employees from 10 major 

corporations.

OC partnered with a variety youth 

groups, including AmeriCorps’ 

City Year in Washington, DC and 

the Boys and Girls Club of Collier 

County, Florida.

Oregon State Ocean Conservancy University of Georgia

University

Educators test out marine debris curriculum at Oregon State 

University.

Middle school students in Georgia tally up marine debris from a 

beach cleanup. 
119 students 

attended the fnal 

event.

108 teachers participated 

in the frst event.

Teachers completed 34 projects, 

involving 21 elementary schools,

7 middle schools and 6 high 

schools.

Held 3 “Ocean Plastic 

Pollution Summit” 

events.

Monterey Bay Aquarium provided California’s K-12 

teachers with an in-depth overview of marine 

debris, along with tools for integrating lessons into 

classrooms through teacher summits.

Monterey Bay Aquarium

Students at the Ocean Plastic Pollution Summit at Monterey Bay 

Aquarium teach and learn about marine debris impacts on our oceans. 
Anchorage Museum Association created GYRE: The 

Plastic Ocean, a science and art exhibit on marine 

plastics using marine debris collected of the 

Alaskan coast.

Anchorage Museum

80,000visitors 

toured the exhibit during 

its 7-month run in Alaska.

5,600 adults and 

students visited the 

exhibit as part of 75

public programs and 

educational events, 

including feld trips. 

As part of the GYRE exhibit, artist Cynthia Minet sculpted a “Pack 

of Dogs” made from recycled and repurposed plastic items. They 

depict waste and the complicated relationships humans have with 

the world we inhabit.
30,000 people 

are signed up to 

receive information 

online through virtual 

“Expedition Reports.”

More than 100

organizations 

nationwide worked with 

Rozalia on events and 

outreach opportunities.

Rozalia Project for a Clean Ocean educated people of all ages 

on marine debris at schools and dockside locations nationwide 

with camps, museums, community centers and waterfront 

organizations, using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) and 

STEM-education curriculum and activities.

Rozalia engaged 

7,900 people 

through schools, 

conferences, dockside

programs, and events in

10states.

Rozalia Project Students aboard the Rozalia Project discover debris at the bottom 

of a river using Hector the Collector an ROV used to fnd trash 

underwater. 
The Sea Research Foundation 

educated 32 high school 

students in New England about 

marine debris and provided 

them an opportunity to become 

marine debris ambassadors to the 

general public. The teens created 

outreach products that reached 

an estimated 10,000 visitors at 

Mystic Aquarium.

One of the summit participants 

led a marine debris project during 

a summer program designed 

for high school students with 

nonverbal learning disabilities and 

autism spectrum disorders.

Smithsonian’s National Zoo 

educated 46,373 visitors along 

its American Trail exhibit on how 

marine debris impacts seabirds 

and marine mammals. The exhibit 

included 25 trained docents, a 

new an interactive marine debris 

kiosk that reached 4,369 people.

You don’t have to visit the zoo to 

learn! The National Zoo created 

an online game to accompany the 

exhibit:

http://nationalzoo.si.edu/

Animals/AmericanTrail/

Interactive/

The National Building Museum’s 

“Designing for Disasters” exhibit 

examines how the U.S. assesses 

risks from natural hazards and 

how we can create policies, 

plans, and designs for safer, more 

disaster resilient communities. 

The NOAA Marine Debris Program 

collaborated with the museum 

to feature artifacts from the 

Misawa dock that washed up on 

Washington’s Olympic Coast in 

December of 2012 from the March 

2011 tsunami that struck Japan.

National Building 

Museum

Smithsonian’s 

National Zoo

Sea Research Foundation

Teen Marine Debris students 

demonstrate how household 

products, such as facial scrubs, 

contain microplastics can easily 

enter into water streams. 

A zoo visitor learns about 

derelict fshing gear and sea bird 

entanglements at the National Zoo’s 

American Trail.

A worker uses a 30% bleach spray to decontaminate 

and reduce the spread of possible marine invasive 

species on the Japanese dock which made landfall 

on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula in December 

2012.
Regional action plans are a crucial step to mitigate marine debris at the source. These road 

maps provide scientists, governments, stakeholders, and decision makers a clear path 

forward to reducing the impact of debris on our oceans and Great Lakes. The NOAA Marine 

Debris Program is proud to lead and assist new and on-going eforts across the region. 

Regional Planning Eforts

The Great Lakes community 

worked together to produce 

the Great Lakes Land-based 

Marine Debris Action Plan, a 

road map for strategic progress 

to see that the Great Lakes, its 

coasts, people, and wildlife are 

free from the impacts of marine 

debris - the frst of its kind for 

the region.

Great Lakes

The Virginia Coastal Zone 

Management Program and its 

partners prioritized strategies 

to identify solutions that will 

target marine debris reduction 

in the Commonwealth and will 

build a Virginia Marine Debris 

Management Plan.

Virginia

North Carolina, South Carolina, 

and Georgia prioritized fve 

marine debris issues for the tristate regional action planning 

eforts: Derelict Fishing gear, 

Wildlife and Habitat Impacts, 

Abandoned and Derelict 

Vessels, Consumer Debris, 

and Marine Debris Emergency 

Response.

Southeast

In Florida, the NOAA Marine 

Debris Program hosted 

a workshop to develop a 

statewide plan that will tackle 

existing marine debris priorities 

for both everyday marine 

debris and debris generated by 

severe weather events.

Florida

The state of Hawaii established 

the nation’s frst Marine Debris 

Action Plan in 2010. It created 

a comprehensive framework 

for strategic action to mitigate 

the negative efects of marine 

debris. This year partners 

across the state gathered to 

determine accomplishments, 

gaps and challenges, and 

identify short term goals with 

long term vision for moving 

forward. 

Hawai’i

The Marine Debris Action 

Coordination Team will draft 

the “West Coast Marine Debris 

Coalition Implementation 

Plan.” The plan will include 

strategies to approach derelict 

fshing gear and land-based 

debris, including recovery 

and cleanup, policy analysis 

and planning, funding, and 

research. 

West Coast 

Governors Alliance

Completed Kicked-off Reinvigorated
The NOAA Marine Debris 

Program and Industrial 

Economics, Inc. designed a 

study that examines how 

marine debris infuences 

people’s decisions to go to the 

beach and what it may cost 

them. This economic study 

was the frst of its kind and 

can be used to target beaches 

for cleanup and prevention 

activities. 

The NOAA Marine Debris 

Program and National Centers 

for Coastal Ocean Science 

published reports that assess 

the current state of science on 

two marine debris impacts: 

ingestion and entanglement.

Economics Report Topic Papers

Marine debris research allows us to better understand debris impacts and identify 

knowledge gaps, so we can forge ahead to fnd solutions through targeted prevention and 

reduction activities. This year, the program funded projects that bring us closer to solving 

the marine debris problem. 

Here is a snapshot of our project accomplishments in 2014:

State of Marine Debris Science
According to newly published 

NOAA Marine Debris Program 

study, derelict fshing traps are a 

largely preventable problem. The 

study, published in the Marine 

Pollution Bulletin, is the frst to 

examine the derelict fsh trap 

problem with a broad, national 

lens and recommend key actions 

to better manage and prevent 

them.

You can access the complete study 

online:

http://www.sciencedirect.

com/science/article/pii/

S0025326X14004305

The program published 

standardized, scientifc 

monitoring techniques for 

conducting rapid assessments 

of the debris material type and 

quantity on beaches. 

Since July 2012, Gulf of the 

Farallones National Marine 

Sanctuary has recorded 3,152 

marine debris items at four 

beaches, the majority of 

which are plastic followed by 

processed wood. Preliminary 

fndings from three beaches 

show marked increase in debris 

after storm events.

Derelict Trap Study Monitoring Technical Memo

A Marine Debris Monitoring and Assessment Project volunteer 

fnds a bottle cap at Sandy Point State Park along the Chesapeake 

Bay.

A derelict trap found in the U.S. Virgin Islands is no longer ghost 

fshing and provides new habitat for corals and other animals. 
More than three years have passed since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan. NOAA continues to work with 

states and local groups to address marine debris from the disaster that is washing up on U.S. shorelines. 

Japan Tsunami Marine Debris

Forty-eight participants from federal, state, agencies, and 

Indian Tribes, as well as representatives from Japan and 

Canada attended a NOAA workshop in Seattle to review 

response eforts and summarize lessons-learned and 

recommendations. 

The program worked with the State of Hawaii, Japanese 

ofcials, and Hawaiian Airlines to return a sign to Tanohata, 

a small village in the Iwate Prefecture that was devastated 

by the tsunami. The sign, which washed up in Oahu in 

September 2013, says, “Shimanokoshi village housing,” and is 

now part of a memorial in the village. 

Marine Debris Program Activity Highlights:

12 confrmed items 

including seveal small 

boats and signs washed 

ashore in 2014. 

Small vessel found on Oregon’s coastline. 
The 2012 storm known as Sandy inficted severe damage to communities over large areas of the Mid-Atlantic and 

Northeast, leaving a swath of destruction and large amounts of debris in the coastal waters and marshes. Following the 

disaster, the program worked with impacted states to determine where marine debris removal was needed. With support 

from the NOAA Marine Debris Program, impacted states have formal agreements in place and have started to clean up 

debris.

Superstorm Sandy

Through a formal agreement with 

the Rhode Island Department 

of Environmental Management 

(RIDEM), the program will support 

the state to assess and remove 

debris from six sites. RIDEM 

estimates that the project locations 

contain more than 100 tons of 

debris. Debris removal will get 

underway by November.

Rhode Island

The Connecticut Department 

of Energy and Environmental 

Protection (CTDEEP) will remove 

debris from eight sites. CTDEEP 

estimates that the sites contain 

approximately 160 tons of debris.

Connecticut

The New York State Ofce of 

Parks, Recreation, and Historic 

Preservation (NY Parks) has used 

funds provided by the program 

to assess and remove debris 

from nine state parks throughout 

Long Island. NY Parks completed 

cleanups at state park sites and 

removed more than 2 tons of 

debris. 

New York State

The New York City Department 

of Parks and Recreation and New 

York City Department of Citywide 

Services will remove debris from 

eleven sites in the boroughs of 

Staten Island, Bronx, and Brooklyn. 

The city estimates that more than 

40,000 cubic yards of debris will 

be removed as a result of support 

from the NOAA Marine Debris 

Program.

New York City

The New Jersey Department of 

Environmental Protection, removed 

271 tons of debris from eight sites 

along the state’s coastline and tidal 

estuary, salt marsh, and forested 

wetland regions. 

New Jersey

The NOAA Marine Debris Program 

completed digital surveys of 

the Delaware coastline, the 

Chesapeake and Delaware Canal, 

and the Delaware Inland Bays to 

help collect data that the Delaware 

Department of Natural Resources 

and Environmental Control will use 

to prioritize marine debris removal.

Delaware

A crane removes Sandy marine debris from New Jersey’s coastline.
Director, 

NOAA Marine Debris Program

Nancy Wallace

Deputy Director, 

NOAA Marine Debris Program

Alison Hammer-Weingast

Communications

Leah Henry

Asma Mahdi

Dianna Parker

Regional Coordinators

Kimberely Albins

Nir Barnea

Keith Cialino

Grace Chon

Kyle Koyanagi

Sherry Lippiatt

Sarah Lowe

Ron Ohrel

Peter Murphy

Jason Rolfe

Research Coordinator

Courtney Arthur

Photo credits

1. NOAA Pacifc Island Fisheries Service Center (Cover)

2. Jason Rolfe, NOAA MDP (Pg. 2)

3. Jason Rolfe, NOAA MDP (Pg. 5)

4. Hawai’i Wildlife Fund (Pg. 6, left)

5. Island Trails Network (Pg. 6, right)

6. Hofstra University (Pg. 7)

7. Northwest Straits Foundation (Pg. 8)

8. Quinault/Joe Schumacher (Pg. 9 left)

9. Sherry Lippiatt, NOAA MDP (Pg. 9, right)

10. Kimberly Albins, NOAA MDP (Pg 10)

11. North Carolina Coastal Federation (Pg. 11)

12. Coastal Cleanup Corporation (Pg. 12, left) 

13. The Corporation of the San Juan Bay Estuary (Pg 12, right)

14. Jason Rolfe, NOAA MDP (Pg. 13)

15. Nir Barnea, NOAA MDP (Pg. 14, left)

16. University of Georgia (Pg. 14, right)

17. Monterey Bay Aquarium (Pg. 15)

18. Asma Mahdi, NOAA MDP (Pg. 16)

19. Rozalia Project (Pg. 17)

20. Keith Cialino, NOAA MDP (Pg. 18, left)

21. Asma Mahdi, NOAA MDP (Pg. 18, center)

22. Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife/Allen Pleus (Pg. 18, right)

23. NOAA/NCCOS/CCMA Biogeography Branch (Pg. 21, left)

24. Asma Mahdi, NOAA MDP (Pg. 21, right)

25. Oregon State Parks (Pg. 22)

26. Ron Ohrel, NOAA MDP (Pg. 24)

For more information about the 

NOAA Marine Debris Program, visit: 

www.MarineDebris.noaa.gov

Acknowledgements
Penny Pritzker

Secretary, 

U.S. Department of Commerce

Kathryn D, Sullivan, Ph.D

U.S. Under Secretary of 

Commerce for Oceans and Atmosphere

Holly Bamford, Ph.D

Assistant Administrator, 

NOAA’s National Ocean Service