A Message From the President and CEO Ocean Conservancy. Shaping Solutions for Trash Free Seas My first International Coastal Cleanup experience as CEO of Ocean Conservancy this past September was both inspiring and sad. Sad because, with gloves and a bucket, I found our stretch of coast thoroughly inundated by waste of all kinds. Inspiring because of the many volunteers surrounding me who were committed to keeping the ocean clean and healthy. Ocean trash truly is a global problem that affects human health and safety, endangers marine wildlife and costs states and nations countless millions in wasted resources and lost revenue. At its core, however, ocean trash is not an ocean problem; it is a people problem -perpetuated by the often unwitting practices that industry and people have adopted over time. But I am convinced we can solve it if we have the audacity to confront the problem head-on. For the past 28 years, Ocean Conservancy has inspired millions of volunteers, as well as industry players, the world over to take action by removing and recording trash during our International Coastal Cleanup. We are proud to report that last fall nearly 650,000 volunteers in 92 countries and locations joined the effort by gathering more than 12.3 million pounds from our beaches and waterways. I am deeply proud of this volunteer effort. But our work has just begun. We need to learn how waste – particularly plastics – ends up in the ocean, how it hurts people and animals, and how we can devise global solutions to this growing problem. We’re on it. We are working with an international group of scientists to figure out answers to the big questions of “Where does it come from?” and “What harm does it do?” Preliminary results, I can tell you, are deeply concerning and include the sheer amount of plastic that is entering the ocean every year. Stay tuned for results later this year. In addition, two of our own marine scientists joined expeditions in Alaska and Maine to survey ocean trash. And we are working with a group of waste management specialists to understand the most promising strategies for meaningful and global reduction of trash – and the role that we, as ocean advocates, must play. Last fall, we also hosted our third meeting of the Trash Free Seas Alliance®, an Ocean Conservancy-led forum uniting leaders from industry, academia and the conservation community around the common goal of tackling marine debris. As we further our work with the Alliance in the coming year, we are optimistic that a combination of scientific research and industry commitment can spur lasting systemic solutions. I invite you to read this report to see further how our collective efforts are leading to progress on the pervasive problem of marine debris. Many challenges still remain, but I am convinced the tide has begun to turn on trash. All of us at Ocean Conservancy remain confident that with the support of our partners and members, we will eliminate ocean trash once and for all. We hope you will join us on this quest. Kind regards, Andreas Merkl President and CEO Ocean Conservancy oceanconservancy.org/our-work/marine-debris/icc-data-2014.pdf
Posted on: Sun, 24 Aug 2014 10:20:17 +0000
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