Seaweek 2006: Footprints for our Future

Marine Education Society of Australasia

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Even desert islands become dumps
Create a table and for every item of marine debris found on this remote island and identify:

the source of the item
the marine life that would be most effected by the item
how long the item might remain in the ocean before it starts to break down.

Take part in the webcasts for Sustainable Biodiversity / Sustainable Recycling - Tuesday March 7th.

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Ducie Atoll, Pitcairn Islands, South Pacific An important breeding area for seabirds, the atoll is littered with as much trash as some European beaches.
photo © Tim G. Benton

Almost 300 miles from the nearest inhabited island and over 3000 miles from the nearest continent, Ducie Atoll in the South Pacific is one of the most remote islands. Yet when a scientist visited in 1991, he found over 950 pieces of rubbish in a 2.4 km stretch of beach.

Here's an inventory of the litter:

Buoys:
large
small
pieces
Crates (bread, bottle)
Plastic bottles (drinks, toiletries)
Glass bottles (from 15 countries)
Jars
Broken plastic pieces
Bottle tops
Pieces of plastic pipe
Pieces of rope
Shoes
Fluorescent tubes
Light bulbs
Aerosol cans
Food/drink cans
Pop tops
Gasoline cans
Gloves (1 pair)

46
67
66
14
71
171
18
268
74
29
44
25
6
6
7
7
2
4
2

Canned meat (leaking but intact)
Cigarette lighters (not working)
Doll's heads (1 male, 1 female)
Copper sheeting from shipwrecks
Truck tire
Plastic ninepin
Glue syringe
Small gas cylinder
Construction worker's hat
Plastic coat hanger
Toy soldier
Half a toy airplane
Tea strainer
Football (punctured)
Car floormat
Asthma inhaler

1
3
2
8
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1

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