Plastic pollution. Photograph: © SAF
Excerpts;
According to a recent EPA-sponsored study (pdf), the annual cost of marine debris cleanup programs on the west coast of the U.S. is likely more than a half a billion dollars. This amounts to approximately $13 per year for every man woman and child in the coastal communities with responsibilities for cleaning the coastline. The report found no “economies of scale” with both larger and smaller communities faces with similar per capita outlays.
The report, dating from September 2012, surveyed typical coastal communities of all shapes and sizes, and added up the annual costs of trash management for six main types of activities…
