Marine rubbish on the rise: report

Nicky Phillips ABC 21 Oct 09;

The damage caused by marine rubbish and debris is costing the Asia-Pacific region more than a billion dollars each year, a new report has found.

The report, commissioned by the Marine Resource Conservation working group of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), found debris is increasing in the region's oceans, despite measures to control it.

Study author Professor Alistair McIlgorm of the National Marine Science Centre in Coffs Harbour says 6.4 million tonnes of debris reaches the world's oceans each year.

Of that 80% is thought to come from land based sources, he says.

More than half of the rubbish is believed to be plastic, but McIlgrom says rubber, wood and sanitary products also add to the problem.

"Poor landfill practices are big contributors to marine debris, especially in Asia," says McIlgrom.

The report also tallied the economic costs of damage caused to the fishing and boat industries by marine rubbish in the Asia-Pacific region.

"Whether they have to untangle plastic from a ship propellers or totally replace an outboard - it's costing industries a lot," he says.

The report used a Japanese economic model, which estimates the damage caused by marine debris costs governments close to 0.3% of their GDP every year.

Conservative estimate

"That came to a total of US$1.265 billion across the 21 APEC economies," says McIlgrom. In Australia, clean up of marine rubbish is costing close to AU$6 million (US$6.5 million) each year.

But these figures are very conservative he says, and don't encompass the total impact of marine rubbish.

"There are lots of other costs, costs to wildlife, loss of tourism and lost capital development opportunities, like building a hotel or resort."

And the report doesn't include the clean-up bill, says McIlgrom.

"If you added the clean-up bill of all of APEC it would be a lot more."

He says what's really worrying is that the amount of marine debris in oceans is growing with the world's population.

"If you took the levels [of rubbish] in 1980 it was much less than it is today, basically we've got lazy with our use of plastics."

McIlgrom insists marine debris is an avoidable cost.

Prevention better than cure

The report recommends that governments focus more on preventing rubbish entering our waterways, instead of trying to control it once it gets there.

"For every 100 units of rubbish that enter the ocean, 15 % float on the surface, 15% collect in the water column near the shore and the rest sinks to the bottom of the deep ocean," says McIlgrom.

With most rubbish originating from land based sources, he says it makes more economic sense for governments to introduce preventative measures.

"Once debris enters the water and becomes diluted, it becomes much more expensive per unit of rubbish to pick up."

McIlgrom says governments should implement proper landfill practices, which would go a long way to reducing the amount of rubbish that ends up in our water ways.

He says recycling, especially of plastic "really needs attention and thought".

McIlgrom says, good strategy is to reimburse people who recycle plastic bottles, like in South Australia.

The report also recommends building nets at the end of estuaries, where rivers or streams meet the ocean, to catch any debris before it makes its way into open water.

Cost assessed for sea rubbish
Southern Cross University, Science Alert 22 Oct 09;

The damage caused by marine debris costs the member nations of APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) around $US1.265 billion a year, according to a report prepared by the National Marine Science Centre in Coffs Harbour.

Professor Alistair McIlgorm, director of the Centre, said the report prepared on behalf of APEC was a first step in addressing the problem of marine debris.

Around 6.4 million tonnes of debris reaches the world’s oceans each year, and approximately eight million items enter the sea every day. The majority of the debris is plastic and comes from land-based sources.

“Marine debris is an issue that needs to be dealt with on a regional basis as littering in one country might have negative impacts in another country. However, until now, there has not been an awareness of the costs of marine debris on economies,” said Professor McIlgorm.

“Industries such as fishing, transportation, tourism and insurance are directly impacted by poor management of debris.”

The study also looked at the costs and benefits of controlling marine debris.

“Up to 80 per cent of marine debris comes from land-based sources, highlighting the need for land and marine agencies to work together to combat this problem,” he said.

“The best way to control marine debris is to stop litter from entering the ocean in the first place. There are methods in place to reduce litter entering the sea which are cost-effective.”

Professor McIlgorm said the challenge was to get all APEC member countries to take action on this issue.

“The report is designed to assist the understanding of the costs and benefits of controlling marine debris, and to empower governments, industries and the community to take action,” he said.

Editor's Note: Original news release can be found here. The APEC report available on their website.

More links to the marine debris situation in Singapore
You CAN make a difference:

• Learn more about the issues: in Singapore on the wild shores of singapore blog and general media articles on the wildnews blog.
• ACT in Singapore: see International Coastal Cleanup Singapore and a post about their effort.