National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) 103

Science | Service | STEWARDSHIP PROTECT THE EARTH

Who Trashed the Ocean?

“During our 5,000-meter dive in Sirena Canyon, along the 

Mariana Trench wall, we saw multiple pieces of marine 

debris. A soda can, a food tin, and a piece of rope all 

accompanied the fish, corals, and rocks that we imaged 

as we moved up the slope. We encountered even more trash 

(nine pieces!) on our dive the following day, including several plastic bags and a piece of clothing. Even 

in one of the deepest places on Earth, humans have left 

their mark.”

~ from NOAA Ocean Explorer 2016 Deepwater Exploration of the Marianas

Mission Log Earth Day, April 22, 2016

Diva Amon, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Deborah Glickson, NOAA Cooperative Institute for Ocean Exploration, Research, and Technology

oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/okeanos/explorations/ex1605/logs/apr22/welcome.html

Marine debris is man-made trash that enters the ocean or Great Lakes 

environment. 

The world’s ocean is constantly polluted with a wide variety of trash ranging 

from soda cans and plastic bags to derelict fi shing gear and abandoned vessels. 

Every day, marine debris impacts marine animals and their habitats. Wildlife can 

become entangled in debris or eat pieces of plastic trash, and valuable habitats 

can be smothered or damaged. Humans are impacted, too. Divers, ships, and 

boats can also become entangled in debris and garbage that litters beaches and 

waterfronts not only looks awful—it also costs thousands of dollars to clean up.

The NOAA Marine Debris Program is the federal lead to investigate and prevent 

the negative impacts of marine debris. They do that by learning more about 

debris in order to best address it, reducing the amount of debris in the environment by cleaning it up, and most importantly, working to prevent marine debris 

in the fi rst place. We can prevent marine debris by educating people about its 

consequences and why we need to stop trashing the ocean.

And that’s where you come in!

What You Will Do

Make a poster to inform people 

about why marine debris is bad 

and why we need to stop it.

When exposed to light, plastics break down into small pieces through a process known as 

‘photodegradation.’ These small bits of plastic, known as microplastics, make up the majority of items found in the so-called ‘Pacifi c Garbage Patch,’ where they fl oat suspended in 

the water column. Image courtesy NOAA.

Who Trashed the Ocean?
noaa.gov

Discover Your World With NOAA

104

What You Will Need

r Crayons, colored markers, or colored pencils

r Poster board

r Scissors (Be careful with sharp scissors!)

r (Optional) Copies of images from “Some Examples of Marine Debris Posters”

r (Optional) Laptop computer, printer

How to Do It

1. Use the examples and your own ideas to create a poster that explains the consequences 

of marine debris, and what we can do to stop 

it.

2. Show your poster at school, to your parents, 

and to other groups. The more people know 

about marine debris and what it does, the 

more they will take personal action to prevent it.

Want to Do More?

1. Visit the NOAA Marine Debris Program Web 

site at marinedebris.noaa.gov/ for more 

about marine debris, as well as information, 

videos, photographs and more about cleanup 

and prevention projects.

2. Check out marinedebris.noaa.gov/resources

for more marine debris poster ideas.

If you have a desktop computer and printer, you can download images from the NOAA Marine Debris 

Program web site (marinedebris.noaa.gov/) and create your own poster with your own ideas.

Marine debris threatens marine life and our oceans and 

coasts. It affects us too, whether we are boating, fishing, 

swimming, or simply enjoying a day at the beach. Trash 

can travel through storm drains, streams, and rivers and 

end up in your community, as well as in the ocean. 

Learn ways to stop this from happening. 

State of Hawaii 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) 105

Science | Service | STEWARDSHIP Protect the Eart

Here are some more facts you can use to create your poster 

also from NOAA’s Marine Debris web site.

This background photo, taken after a 21-day 

marine debris removal effort by the Pacific 

Island Fisheries Service Coral Reef Ecosystem 

Division, shows 4,781 bottle caps collected from 

Midway Atoll’s shoreline. Most plastic bottle 

caps are made from polypropylene, also known 

as plastic #5-- a hard, durable plastic that can 

be difficult to recycle in some municipalities.

IMPACTS

OF MARINE DEBRIS

!

WORLDWIDE,

MORE THAN

200

SPECIES

ARE IMPACTED BY

ENTANGLEMENT 

PACKING BANDS ARE 

RESPONSIBLE

FOR MORE THAN HALF OF THE 

STELLER

SEA LION 

ENTANGLEMENTS

IN ALASKA

AT LEAST

1/3 OF ALL

SEABIRD

SPECIES

EAT DEBRIS

ALL

SEA TURTLE

SPECIES

EAT DEBRIS

GET INVOLVED and participate in local 

cleanups in your area. 

REMEMBER that our land and sea are 

connected. 

DISPOSE OF WASTE PROPERLY

no matter where you are.

REDUCE the amount of waste you produce. 

REUSE items when you can. Choose reusable 

items over disposable ones.

RECYCLE as much as possible! Bottles, cans, 

cell phones, ink cartridges, and many other 

items can be recycled.

INGESTION 

Animals mistakenly eat plastic and other debris.

ENTANGLEMENT & GHOSTFISHING 

Marine life gets caught and killed in ghost nets, trapped 

in derelict gear, and entangled in plastic bands and other 

marine debris.

HAZARD TO NAVIGATION 

below the water’s surface. Encounters with large items at sea 

can result in costly vessel damage, either to its structure or 

through a tangled propeller or obstruct mechanical gears.

HABITAT DAMAGE 

Heavy marine debris crushes sensitive habitat, such as coral 

reefs and sea grass.

NON-NATIVE SPECIES 

Marine debris transports alien and invasive species from one 

region to another.

ECONOMIC COST 

Communities lose a lot of money cleaning up trash, as well as 

HOW

Y

CAN HELP

OU Facebook: 

www.facebook.com/

NOAAMarineDebris

Instagram & Twitter

@NOAADebris

Website

http://marinedebris.noaa.gov

DEBRIS

FACTS

$$$

GARBAGE 

PATCHES Currents and winds move marine debris 

throughout the ocean, sometimes far 

from its origin. “Garbage patches” are 

areas in the ocean where marine debris 

accumulates because of converging 

currents. These areas are not solid 

islands of trash that you can see easily 

with the naked eye. They are made 

up mostly of tiny microplastics swirling 

throughout the ocean’s water column. 

Garbage patches exist in ocean gyres 

all over the world. 

PLASTIC 

MARINE DEBRIS 

debris in the ocean. Globally, we are 

consuming more and more single-use 

plastic items, but many countries lack 

the waste infrastructure to process it. In 

places where there is good infrastructure, 

intentional littering or improper disposal 

may add to the problem. 

Plastic does not biodegrade in the ocean. 

It can fragment into tiny pieces called 

microplastics, less than 5 mm in length, 

from weathering and sun exposure. 

Plastics in the ocean can last for hundreds