A Rising Tide of Ocean Debris and What We Can Do About It

Ocean Conservancy's report A Rising Tide of Ocean Debris and What We Can Do About It reveals all the findings of the 2008 Cleanup in its one-of-a-kind Marine Debris Index, the world's only country-by-country, state-by-state breakdown of trash in our ocean, lakes, rivers, and streams. This comprehensive body of data compiled each year at the Cleanup has informed major legislation and inspired improvements in packaging and other technologies as well as expanded recycling efforts in communities large and small.

The report also zeroes in on the startling impacts of ocean trash on wildlife and ocean ecosystems. And it identifies marine debris as one of the stresses compromising the ocean's ability to adapt to climate change.

Together, the Marine Debris Index and the report's recommendations provide a roadmap for eliminating marine debris altogether by reducing it at the source, changing the behaviors that cause it, and supporting better policy. Armed with knowledge about the most prevalent components of marine debris, elected officials can make informed policy decisions, community leaders can tailor and expand recycling and other trash-reduction programs, corporate decision-makers can improve technology and reduce packaging, and individuals can recycle, reuse, or properly dispose of trash to keep these items out of the ocean in the first place.