Sea Floor Plastic is Everywhere
During a 5 day Mediterranean expedition, Oceana recovered a tremendous amount of plastic waste on the sea floor.
Oceana, the largest international advocacy organization dedicated solely to ocean conservation, presents solutions to our ocean’s most pressing issues. Together, we can restore our ocean’s health and abundance.
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A group of shrimp hover around plastic garbage in Beirut, Lebanon. Shrimp and other small marine organisms that form the base of the ocean food chain can ingest plastic, which then accumulates in larger ocean predators, like fish.
A jellyfish encounters a piece of plastic in the waters of the Aeolian Islands, Sicily, Italy. Sea turtles often mistake plastic bags for jellyfish, a common food source, and ingesting those plastic bags can seriously harm or kill sea turtles.
Safety diver Karina Erazo recovers a plastic dish in Valencia, Spain. Plastic waste is everywhere, washing up on the world’s most remote coastlines and sitting at the deepest point of the ocean floor nearly 7 miles beneath the surface.
A piece of plastic floats next to a sea star in Valencia, Spain. Plastics never go away. Instead, they break up into smaller and smaller pieces, ultimately becoming microplastics that act as magnets for harmful chemical pollutants.