Most man-made debris can create aesthetic or environmental problems. Since most plastic tends to float, currents transport it to shore. Even in remote areas like Antarctica researchers are now finding plastic bottles, bags, and sheeting washed ashore. Marine animals sometimes confuse plastic items for real food - a fatal mistake.
Ingested plastics can cause internal injury, intestinal blockage, or starvation.
Seabirds are known to eat everything from small plastic pieces to plastic lighters and bottle caps. Some birds even feed plastic debris to their young. Sea turtles often mistake bags and sheeting for jellyfish, a favorite prey item. Even the great whales are victims - several have been found dead with plastic bags and sheeting in their stomachs. Sometimes an animal accidentally swims into a piece of plastic and becomes ensnared, unable to escape.