Marine debris can be found in all the world’s oceans. Plastic is the predominant material. From cigarette lighters to cylume sticks, from toys to food crates and from toothbrushes to mooring rope, the range of debris reflects our universal use of plastics, and equally our ignorance of the nature of plastic as a pollutant, its proper recycling and disposal. Whether accidental or deliberate the incremental accumulation of plastic in the ocean and shore systems is having an increasingly serious and often fatal consequence for sea life and ecosystems.

Dynamic as it is, the planetary ocean system circulates and mixes this debris, and over time breaks it down into smaller and smaller pieces. Plastic debris has the ability to seriously effect all parts of the marine ecosystem. These effects are not however equal everywhere. Within the dynamic ocean system there are places and times when debris is trapped in eddies or gyres. Often this coincides with a concentration of sea life and feeding activity with serious effects. For example in breeding seabird colonies where parents mistake plastic debris for food and deliver this to their chicks.

World Ocean Gyres

Coastlines are another of these places of accumulation. Here however the problem is both observable and accessible. It is here that we can gain a sense of the state of our nearby seas and oceans and the human impact on them. Observation and analysis of the debris coming ashore can improve our perception of the problem and our understanding of the processes at work. Accumulating data from beach clean ups provides a growing knowledge base for conducting public education and influencing changes of practice at both individual, community, industry and government levels.

The aims of this manual are to identify items of marine debris, provide background information about them and identify groups of items which have a common origin.

This manual is intended to assist anyone interested in tackling the marine debris issue. We hope to update the manual as new items are found and to include information on counting and collecting strategies. At the moment the manual reflects the debris coming ashore between Cape Naturaliste and Cape Leeuwin on the south-west coast of Western Australia. We hope to be able to interact with places further a field as part of the development of this manual.