Entangled
Fishing nets, ropes, & lines lost at sea are the most hazardous type of debris in the ocean. Lost or abandoned from fishing vessels, ghost nets can be up to 6 kilometres long and are known to kill more than 200 species of marine animals and birds. Each year countless marine animals become victims of a cruel and silent killer. It is estimated that over 100,000 animals die each year from ghost nets.
One of the most tragic impacts from marine debris is wildlife entanglement. Fishing nets, ropes, line, balloon string, six-pack rings, and a variety of marine debris items can wrap around and strangle marine animals. Entanglement can lead to injury, illness, suffocation, starvation, and even death.
Habitat Damage
Marine debris can scour, break, smother, and otherwise damage important marine habitat, such as coral reefs. Many of these habitats serve as the basis of marine ecosystems and are critical to the survival of many other species.
Economic loss
Marine debris is an eyesore along shorelines around the world. It degrades the beauty of the coastal environment and, in many cases, may cause economic loss if an area is a popular tourist destination. Would you want to swim at a beach littered in trash? And, many coastal communities may not have the resources to continually clean up debris.
- National Geographic: Ocean Trash
- National Geographic: Great Pacific Garbage Patch
- National Geographic: Marine Debris
- NOAA: Marine Debris Program
Our goal is to spread knowledge of the issue of marine debris. Planet Love Life directly supports beach cleanups and removal of marine debris. Beach rope removal is a step in the right direction and helps to prevent wildlife entanglements.