Marine Plastic Pollution Resources

Plastic pollution in marine waters is a problem that impacts wildlife and the greater marine environment. Education for boaters is vital to seeking a solution.

I work with the Coast Guard in the area they label Marine and Environmental Protection (MEP). Along with drug interdiction, marine safety, and homeland security concerns, the Coast Guard is responsible for enforcing the laws concerning marine pollution. Many of these laws are based commitments made by the United States in international treaties. The one that comes immediately to mind is called MARPOL or International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships. Owners of boats over 28 feet in length should be familiar with MARPOL, it is the reason you to have a placard installed on your boat related marine garbage disposal. The chief concerns for MEP are Marine Plastic and Oil Pollution.

I thought I would present some related references to plastic pollution. It is interesting to see how the problem is addressed in other parts of the country and world. Each entry has a link and a brief quote from that site:

• University of Delaware Sea Grant College Program: Plastic Pollution in the Marine Environment: Boaters Can Help Control a Growing Problem - "Plastic, the wonder material that we use for everything, is perhaps the most harmful of this trash because it does not readily break down in nature."
• The Dolphin Action & Protection Group: Marine Plastic Pollution: What Cost to Fishermen and Boaters? - " While most man-made debris can create aesthetic or environmental problems, the qualities that have made plastics so successful make plastic debris a persistent threat in the ocean."
• NOAA Coastal Services Center: Marine Plastic Pollution Research and Control Act (33 U.S.C. §§ 1901 et seq.) - "The Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS) was amended by the Marine Plastic Pollution Research and Control Act of 1987, which implemented the provisions of Annex V of the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL) relating to garbage and plastics."
• California Coastal Commission: The Problem with Marine Debris - "Millions of Californians enjoy the state's coastline and waterways everyday. However, many of those people are unaware how their daily activities, from driving a car, to not properly disposing of their garbage, or even throwing a cigarette butt on the ground, can impact the plants and animals off our shores."
• Louisiana State University Sea Grant College Program: Marine Litter: More Than a Mess - "Facts about marine litter from Sea Grant programs."
• The Ocean Conservancy: Marine Debris Study History - "In 1989, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Park Service (NPS) agreed to conduct a five-year pilot study developing a methodology for determining trends in marine debris."

Marine plastic pollution is a problem that all boaters should be addressing through their own actions and by educating others using water resources. These plastic pollution references will give you an idea of what the problem involves. I will present more on this subject at Boating and Sailing.