{"id":15867,"date":"2021-11-23T12:07:47","date_gmt":"2021-11-23T17:07:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/coastwatch\/?page_id=15867"},"modified":"2024-08-20T12:15:38","modified_gmt":"2024-08-20T16:15:38","slug":"currents-winter-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ncseagrant.ncsu.edu\/coastwatch\/currents-winter-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"Currents: N.C. Marine Debris by the Numbers"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n\n\n

PLEASURABLE ACTIVITIES LIKE FISHING OR EATING A PICNIC LUNCH CAN HAVE UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES FOR MARINE ECOSYSTEMS, ANIMALS, AND EVEN HUMAN BEINGS. Whether it\u2019s a fishing line left behind or a plastic bag that accidentally flew away, our small actions can negatively impact the earth for thousands of years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marine debris has become one of the biggest environmental threats to the planet, with plastic comprising the bulk of this problem \u2014 and it\u2019s not just sea turtles that are hurt by floating debris disguised as delicious jellyfish. When the fish we eat have ingested microplastics, we might ingest these harmful substances, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As DukeEngage interns partnering with \u201cNorth Carolina Marine Debris Action Plan<\/a>\u201d organizations, we conducted a research project that examined North Carolina cleanup and observation reports from NOAA\u2019s Marine Debris Tracker App and the Ocean Conservancy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

When we looked at the numbers from 2016 to 2021, we learned that our state\u2019s marine debris included 552,957 collected or observed items from reporting counties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eleven of North Carolina\u2019s 20 coastal counties reported almost three-quarters of this trash; the other nine coastal counties did not submit clean-up reports. All told, the statewide total of over one-half million items came from only 59 reporting counties (out of North Carolina\u2019s 100 counties), underrepresenting the amount of trash in the state\u2019s environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diving deeper into the statistics shows that cigars and cigarette butts are the most prominent kinds of marine debris in North Carolina, nearly one-third of the total number of items of trash reported. This isn\u2019t a surprise; tobacco waste is the most commonly reported litter worldwide. Once in the environment, cigarette butts release chemicals, including arsenic, which are harmful to marine life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After analyzing data on the composition of marine debris, we found plastic to be the most common substance, comprising 71% of the items collected. This includes water and soda bottles, grocery bags, utensils, and anything else manufactured with that difficult-to-decompose material.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plastic bottles, in particular, can take 450 years to break down, depending on various estimates. Because they didn\u2019t exist before the 1940s, every plastic water bottle that consumers haven\u2019t properly recycled or disposed of still exists in the environment today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cNorth Carolina Marine Debris Action Plan<\/a>\u201d highlights concrete steps businesses and governments can take to reduce marine debris. If the food industry implemented marine debris reduction strategies, for example, like swapping single-use plastics for reusable alternatives, the environment would directly benefit. The political sphere also can spark environmental change through public policies that address and prevent marine debris.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jackie Jaffe and Cameron DeChurch, students at Duke University, served as DukeEngage interns for the \u201cNorth Carolina Marine Debris Action Plan.\u201d Partners on the Duke University Marine Lab\u2019s DukeEngage N.C. Marine Debris Assessment project include North Carolina Sea Grant, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, N.C. Coastal Federation, Jennette\u2019s Pier, and the North Carolina Coastal Reserve and National Estuarine Research Reserve System.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

lead photo: Cigars and cigarette butts comprise almost a third of all reported items of marine debris. Credit: Helen Penjam.<\/p>\n\n\n

Related<\/h2>
\n Winter 2021 Issue<\/span>\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/svg><\/span>\n <\/a>\n <\/div><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Reported trash in our state totals over one-half million items \u2014 and there\u2019s reason to believe the actual total is higher.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":63,"featured_media":15882,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"views\/single-immersive.blade.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ncst_custom_author":"Jackie Jaffe and Cameron DeChurch","ncst_show_custom_author":true,"ncst_dynamicHeaderBlockName":"ncst\/default-immersive-post-header","ncst_dynamicHeaderData":"{\"backgroundColor\":\"custombg_one\",\"displayCategoryID\":645,\"showAuthor\":true,\"showDate\":true,\"showFeaturedVideo\":false,\"subtitle\":\"Reported trash in our state totals over one-half million items \u2014 and there\u2019s reason to believe the actual total is higher.\"}","ncst_content_audit_freq":"","ncst_content_audit_date":"","ncst_content_audit_display":false,"ncst_backToTopFlag":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[637,593,1547,645],"tags":[],"_ncst_magazine_issue":[652],"class_list":["post-15867","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-637","category-coastal-resilience","category-healthy-ecosystems","category-winter-2021"],"displayCategory":{"term_id":645,"name":"Winter 2021","slug":"winter-2021","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":646,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":637,"count":12,"filter":"raw"},"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nCurrents: N.C. 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