Once plastics have entered the vast open oceans, they are extremely difficult to remove in a safe and cost-effective manner. As a result, plastic contamination levels in many regions are high.
Accumulating plastic has been shown to negatively impact a diversity of habitats through entanglement, entrapment, and smothering, harming species throughout the marine food web, including corals, crabs, seabirds, whales, and turtles.
While policies have been introduced in many countries to limit plastic manufacturing and consumption and improve waste management, at present, the rate of plastic production and release into the environment vastly outpaces any societal changes we have made.
