What is the most common type of trash in our oceans? And which ones are the most deadly?
More than 560,000 volunteers in 91 countries spanned over 13,000 miles in the 2014 International Coastal Cleanup. And over 16 million pounds of trash were collected in last year’s Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup program.
The data from the program, dating back 30 years, in addition to a survey of 274 experts, was put into a study that ranked their findings.
The most common types of trash found were cigarette butts, food wrappers, bottles and bottle caps. And some of the deadliest types for marine mammals, turtles and seabirds included fishing gear, plastic bags and utensils, balloons, cigarette butts and bottle caps.
See the report by the numbers with Ocean Conservancy’s infographics:
Featured image by USFWS – Pacific Region / CC BY 2.0
Wildlife Untamed 