AWA: Academic Writing at Auckland

Title : Marine Debris Assignment

Author : ....

Introduction: Marine debris is a global issue. It is a result of human trash which has ended up
in oceans through deliberate and/or accidental means. It has particularly adverse effects on
these oceans and life forms associated with it, where rubbish are toxic to life or can entangle
marine animals. 

Aim of study: to investigate the sources of marine debris and to clean up beaches in the
Auckland region.

Methodology: The ENVSCI101 class for 2015 collected rubbish in groups, from beaches in
the Auckland region. These occurred on a day that each group chose. Marine debris was
picked up and put into rubbish bags, and were recorded directly when they were picked up,
or after when the beach had been fully cleaned. This data was collated into an excel
spreadsheet, along with other beach information such as its aspect, location, tidal stage, and
description. A final collated data set was created by the staff and given to students to
analyze. Some final data provided had values entered without units, therefore difficulty
arises when values can appear absurd and misread. There are some data errors which are
also impossible to discuss accurately, such as the length of beach cleaned for Muriwai
Beach (via Rimmers Road) gave 17km, which is improbable.

Results/Discussion: Answer the following questions under appropriate headings.

1. What are the main sources of marine debris in the Auckland area?

● Compile and present a list of the top ten marine debris items.

Develop a classification scheme to break up the complete list of different types of
marine debris into a concise list of source categories based on human activities (aim
for 4-6 classifications).

- Food and beverages (+ associated containers)
(e.g. lollipop sticks, straws / stirrers)

- Recreational
(e.g. toys, fishing equipment, drugs – syringes/cigarettes, shotgun shells,
sexual paraphernalia)

- Storage with/without lids (incl. polystyrene)
(e.g. food wrappers / containers, drums, crate)

- Health, sanitary
(e.g. tissues)

- Industrial
(e.g. building materials, batteries, wood)

Which human activities have created most of the marine debris and why?
Food and beverage related human activities have created the most of the marine debris
listed here. These are due to the proximity of most beaches that are close to the urbanized
settlements in Auckland.

2. Which of the beaches in the Auckland area have the most marine debris?
● Develop a classification scheme for determining relative beach pollution. Can we just
use the total count of marine debris or are there other factors we should take into
account? Think about the other parameters we recorded. Explain your classification
scheme and compile a list of the top ten cleanest beaches and the top ten most
polluted beaches in the greater Auckland area.
Other factors that can be taken into account include:
- Storm exposure

East coast (with typical low energy) versus West coast (with typical high energy)
beaches?
- Amount of people visiting the beach
- Length of beach cleaned vs amount of rubbish collected
- Part of beach cleaned (is there point-source accumulation - e.g. mass dumping?
Windblown rubbish accumulation in one end of the beach, skewed distribution, so is
cleaning only one part of the beach representative of the entire beach?
- Had beach been cleaned previously? - unknown limitation
- Was the beach surrounded by development or not?
- Weather/sea conditions
- Low, medium or high tidal stage?
- Predominant wind direction?
- Beach aspect

The classification scheme divides the amount of rubbish found at the beach by the length of
the beach cleaned. The unit for length is the SI unit metre. The value represents the amount
of rubbish in one given metre, on average. A large value would determine a more populated
beach.

● Which beaches are the most/least polluted and why?
5 most polluted beaches:

5 least polluted beaches:

Muriwai Beach (via Rimmers Rd) and Oneroa Beach were omitted due to errors with
information.

http://www.mfe.govt.nz/marine/marine-pages-kids/how-you-can-reduce-marine-pollution

● Does the type of marine debris change between different beach locations? If so,
why?

Yes. This is based on the surrounding area near the beach’s proximity. For industrial zones,
it is common to see building material, whilst in highly populated urban areas, the beach and
their associated rubbish reflects the habits of these areas.

● Is this marine debris likely to change seasonally?

Yes. In summer, waves are generally more constructive, where swell waves exceed
backwash waves and so will deposit more material, whereas in winter, waves are destructive
and are more likely to erode the coastline and bring more sediment offshore.

3. Which items of marine debris are the most dangerous?
● From the marine debris found in this study list those items which are potentially the
most dangerous to humans, animals and marine organisms?

Humans:
- Broken glass
- Batteries
- Syringes
- Ceramics (broken / unbroken)
- Poison bottle
- Beverage cans
- Metal
- Appliance parts
- Rubber
- cheeseburger
- Fishing weights
- Fishing hooks

Animals:
- Broken glass
- Batteries
- Syringes
- Ceramics (broken / unbroken)
- Poison bottle
- Beverage cans
- Metal
- Appliance parts
- Fishing weights
- Fishing hooks

Marine organisms:
- Batteries
- Fish / lobster traps
- Fishing nets
- Fishing line
- Rubber fishing bait
- Plastic bags, pieces, sheets / tarps
- Six pack holders
- Poison bottle
- Goon sack
- Lanyard
- Strapping bands

● Explain why these items are the most dangerous.
For humans, animals and marine organisms, poison bottles pose a danger since they most
likely could be toxic when ingested, by these 3 groups. Batteries also possess this danger,
but can also be a choking hazard or harmful when they swallowed. Most humans avoid this
risk, but children are particularly vulnerable as they may be less educated or unknowing.
Rubber cheeseburgers may also pose a danger for all ages of people, because it looks like a
cheeseburger.

All things that are mostly dangerous to humans are also mostly dangerous to animals.
Syringes, ceramics, fishing hooks and beverage cans provide walking hazards to both, and
could cause bleeding and infections. Metal and appliance parts also pose walking hazards
as well as choking hazards. Fishing weights pose a choking hazard to both humans and
animals too.

Marine organisms face their own dangers too. Fish / lobster traps, fishing nets, fishing lines
and rubber fishing baits are all specialized equipment designed for targeting fish. Fish and/or
lobster traps may trap marine organisms. Fishing nets and lines can have entangling and
strangulation dangers, while rubber fishing baits may be swallowed as they are disguised to
look like food. These fishing baits could be harmful to a marine organism’s digestive system.
Plastic also poses a great danger, since these take many years to eventually degrade, but
during the time is hasn’t, it can be incredibly harmful if consumed, or can entangle marine
organisms. Six pack holders, goon sacks, lanyards and strapping bands also can entangle
marine organisms.

4. In the United States of America, 80% of marine debris is from land based sources which
humans have made. 20% of marine debris is sea based, which are either accidental or
deliberate (US Environmental Protection Agency, 2016a). However, it is not reasonable to
discuss that all people who use and are in the marine environment are responsible for this
marine debris. However, judging by common boating paraphernalia, it is more easier to
determine who is causing the trash the has ended up in the ocean (Ellis & Podlich, 1997).
Approximately half of marine debris found on beaches are plastic, and includes rubbish that
is for single use only (US Environmental Protection Agency, 2016a). Another article
highlights how marine debris is caused by issues with sewage and stormwater drains, runoff
infiltrations into waterways and littering at the beach itself (Nollkaemper, 1994).

In the United States, some innovative solutions have been generated in order to reduce sea
based marine debris at the source. Monofilament fishing lines are commonly found in the
marine environment, as a result of being improperly disposed of. These can harm marine
organisms by entangling them and disabling/reducing their mobility. These fishing lines are
normally replaced on a yearly interval, and can often be dumped at sea deliberately. A
solution to this issue was the recycling of old monofilament fishing lines which were collected
in cardboard boxes, in order to then be remarketed again. Improving on this was the more
strategic placement of more durable boxes at places where boaters were expected to go into
the marine environment (Ellis & Podlich, 1997). Other initiatives include a forum project titled
‘Boaters for the Bay’, concerning environmental issues with boaters, which in turn delivers
both a bottom-up and top-down integration approach. This empowered the boaters to
discuss their own environmental interests and providing resources and their own
development strategies, while also offering regulatory advice for boating in a more
environmentally friendly manner. (Ellis & Podlich, 1997).

Korea offers an engineering approach, where prevention equipment is constructed in order
to prevent marine debris entering the marine environment. As is noticed in Korea, there is a
peak in the amount of marine debris which forms after heavy rainfall. A “floating debris
containment boom” complete with a net is installed from June to September annually, since
rainfall is expected to peak during these months. It acts as a containment device which is
designed to capture marine debris before it reaches its projected destination: the marine
environment ((Jung, Sung, Chun & Keel, 2010).

Another Korean approach is an incentive approach to fishermen (sic). Incheon city, a coastal
city in Korea, initiated an incentive program for fishermen (sic) to earn $5 USD per 40L bag
of marine debris. At the same time, this would come to be a high amount of savings for the
local government, who would have spent $43 USD per 40L more if they chose to directly
remove marine debris from the area. While met with criticism about the time-consuming
nature of collecting marine debris, the government also reassured the fishermen (sic) that
the abundance of fish would increase (Cho, 2009). However, this government has failed to
recognise that this would stop the supply of marine debris entering the marine environment -
where littering is not a crime (Cho, 2003; cited in Cho, 2009). Nor has this scheme prevented
fishermen (sic) to dousing other forms of trash into water and essentially abusing the system
by selling other forms of trash back to the government.

The EPA (or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) has some prevention and control
programs. These include many community-based engagement activities, such as beach
cleanups, education, and promotion of recycling. They are involved with the surveillance and
monitoring approach both on a local and international scale. They attempt to prevent trash
from entering into the marine environment, and lessen the impacts of improper waste
disposal through authoritative measures. It also supports the International Coastal Cleanup
(Grumbles, 2008).

Another innovative approach by the United States is the establishment of the Pollution
Prevention Act. It offers a source reduction ideal, in which different levels of society -
“industry, government, and public” - are made aware of practices that involve hazardous
pollutants from entering the environment (Environmental Protection Agency, 2016b). This
approach prevents waste, is expected to provoke thoughts amongst the public in using less
packaging or single-use items, and reusing materials (Environmental Protection Agency,
2016c).

Conclusion:

In conclusion, marine debris is a major issue in both Auckland’s scale and an international
scale. However, the international community has responded to this in various ways. This
includes engineering approaches, as well as social regulations, and preventative measures
from the reduction of rubbish to the prevention of rubbish entering the marine environment.
The marine debris is representative of human activities, commonly found in the nearby
areas.

5b.
Main sources and types of Marine Debris in the US

	(data provided by EPA, 2016)
At a local perspective…

This is all worth knowing, but who has caused marine debris ?

The clue is in the rubbish found at beaches. Most of it is similar to what we all have in our households, while a smaller % is from marine related activities. It arrives primarily from sewer / rainwater drainage systems which head directly into beaches, which are mostly packed with people during Summer. Marine debris has the potential to entangle and provide harmful effects towards the organisms that live in the ocean itself. The easiest option is to dispose of our rubbish correctly. The next step is to clean the beaches where marine debris is found.

Reference List

Cho, D. O. (2009). The incentive program for fishermen to collect marine debris in Korea.
Marine pollution bulletin, 58(3), 415-417.

Ellis, J., & Podlich, M. (1997). Recreational Boaters and Marine Debris: How We Can
Effectively Reduce Littering. In Marine Debris (pp. 271-276). Springer New York.

Grumbles, B. H. (2008). EPA's Marine Debris program: Taking action against trash. Sea
Technology, 49(1), 23-23.

Jung, R. T., Sung, H. G., Chun, T. B., & Keel, S. I. (2010). Practical engineering approaches
and infrastructure to address the problem of marine debris in Korea. Marine pollution
bulletin, 60(9), 1523-1532.

Nollkaemper, A. (1994). Land-based discharges of marine debris: from local to global
regulation. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 28(11), 649-652.

US Environmental Protection Agency. (2016a). Sources of Aquatic Trash. Retrieved from
https://www.epa.gov/trash-free-waters/sources-aquatic-trash .

US Environmental Protection Agency. (2016b). Summary of the Pollution Prevention Act.
Retrieved from https://www.epa.gov/laws-regulations/summary-pollution-prevention-act .

US Environmental Protection Agency. (2016c). Preventing Trash at the Source. Retrieved
from https://www.epa.gov/trash-free-waters/preventing-trash-source-0 .