EPA's Trash Free Waters (TFW) program refers to the garbage polluting U.S. rivers, lakes, streams, and creeks as "aquatic trash." Most of the garbage that ends up in waterways comes from land-based activities. Garbage can easily become aquatic trash if it is not properly disposed of or securely contained. When garbage is littered on the ground rather than placed in a recycle, compost, or trash bin, rain and wind often carries it into storm drains, streams, canals, and rivers.

The term "biodegradable" when used for marketing purposes includes a time component regarding the length of time it takes for the plastic to fully degrade. According to the Federal Trade Commission's "Green Guides": "It is deceptive to make an unqualified degradable claim for items entering the solid waste stream if the items do not completely decompose within one year after customary disposal.

Over 130 countries have declared support for a global agreement to combat marine litter and microplastics. There are numerous processes underway to build momentum towards an ambitious global plastics agreement at the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) 5.2 in February 2022. This webinar will discuss why a growing number of countries have indicated support for a plastic pollution treaty and what it could look like.

Marine debris is all the manmade stuff that ends up in the oceans - from soda cans and plastic bottles to sunken ships. There's marine debris in every ocean on Earth, and all that junk can kill and injure sea life, impede navigation, leach chemicals, and even end up in our food.

Marine debris is litter that ends up in oceans, seas, or other large bodies of water. This manmade debris gets into the water in many ways. People often leave trash on beaches or throw it into the water from boats or offshore facilities, such as oil rigs. Sometimes, litter makes its way into the ocean from land. This debris is carried by storm drains, canals, or rivers. The wind can even blow trash from landfills and other areas into the water. Storms and accidents at sea can cause ships to sink or to lose cargo.

The Ocean Cleanup's System 001/B has successfully captured 60 1-cubic-meter bags of plastic from the Great Pacific garbage patch and returned it safely to Vancouver, British Columbia, where the organization held a press conference today to discuss its plans to develop the plastic into reusable products. We spoke with CEO Boyan Slat about what needs to be done next.

Plastic production is increasing globally and in turn there is a rise of plastic waste lost into the coastal and marine environment. To combat this issue, there is an increase in policies that target specific types of plastic waste (such as microbeads and plastic shopping bags). Given that such anthropogenic waste have environmental impacts, reduce the tourism income of an area and result in human health issues, identifying effective abatement policies is imperative to reducing waste and litter before it enters the ocean.

Help keep our ocean clean while participating in citizen science! Learn how to use the Marine Debris Tracker app to collect trash, log it, and track it.

Help keep our ocean clean while participating in citizen science! Learn how to use the Marine Debris Tracker app to collect trash, log it, and track it.

Featuring NOAA Marine Debris Program Educational Specialist Leah Henry, this fun and informative ten minute webinar provides a quick demonstration of hands on activities you can easily offer after you show the TRASH TALK special feature for your World Ocean Day event.