holiday

By: Caitlin Wessel, Gulf of Mexico Regional Coordinator for the NOAA Marine Debris Program

Mardi Gras is a fun occasion for many cities across the South, from New Orleans to Alabama. Bead necklaces and other items like moon pies, cups, and cheap toys are a Mardi Gras staple and are thrown to excited crowds lining the streets during parades that begin six weeks before Fat Tuesday. Unfortunately, many of these items are abandoned on the street and can easily wash down street drains and end up in streams, rivers, and eventually the Gulf of Mexico. Learn how our partners are working to reduce the environmental impacts of Mardi Gras while keeping the Mardi Gras spirit alive and well!

Monday is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and let’s remember that it’s not just a day off from work and school, but a day to think about what it means for our country. To commemorate a great man who spent his life serving others, this day has become a time to come together to give back to our communities and volunteer our time to a good cause. If you’d like to participate in MLK Day of Service, consider joining a cleanup in your area. Cleaning up your local shoreline or even just your neighborhood can help prevent trash from becoming marine debris and can help to create a healthy ocean that we can all enjoy.

By: Amanda Laverty, Sea Grant Knauss Fellow for the NOAA Marine Debris Program

Happy New Year! Did you make any goals or resolutions for the upcoming year? Here at the Marine Debris Program, we are striving to reduce the amount of waste we produce annually. The EPA estimates that, on average, Americans generate 4.40 pounds of waste per person per day. Now that is a lot of trash and unfortunately, much of it becomes marine debris. The good news is that because we are the problem, we can be the solution too! By committing ourselves to one or more of the goals below, we can help move in the direction of a cleaner and healthier world. If we strive to reduce our individual impacts, we can make a huge difference together! Here are a few simple ways to get started.

As another year comes to a close, we like to take this time to look back on 2017 and look forward to the year ahead. This year, the NOAA Marine Debris Program saw over 18,300 students involved in marine debris education and outreach and more than 1,600 metric tons of debris removed from our shores! Check out our 2017 Accomplishments Report for more on what we’ve achieved this past year. Looking to 2018, we’re excited for the year ahead and we hope you are too! We resolve to continue our fight against marine debris in several ways. What are your resolutions? There are many efforts we can all resolve to make to get our ocean off to a good start in 2018.

By: Amanda Laverty, Sea Grant Knauss Fellow for the NOAA Marine Debris Program

The ocean remains one of the most expansive and diverse places on Earth. Sadly, marine debris continues to threaten this sensitive ecosystem, with a lack of waste management infrastructure around the world and expanding populations heightening the problem. Here at the NOAA Marine Debris Program, we are showing our love for the ocean this holiday season by celebrating with less waste and more marine debris prevention! We hope you will join us by considering how you might apply some of these ideas and tips to reduce your holiday footprint this year.

It’s almost Thanksgiving and here the NOAA Marine Debris Program (MDP), we’re thinking about what we’re most thankful for this year.

At the MDP, we’re thankful for the wonderful partners that we work with to help spread the message, clean up, and learn more about the issue of marine debris. We’re also thankful for all the people out there that are thinking about marine debris and how they can help. Each person that thinks “you know, maybe I’ll use a reusable bag at the grocery store today”—we’re thankful for you and your efforts to reduce extra waste that could find its way to the ocean!

BOO! It’s Halloween—the scariest day of the year—and nothing is more frightening on All Hallows’ Eve than… marine debris!

Halloween is both scary and fun, but unfortunately often results in an increase in trash that can become marine debris. But, thankfully there are ways to *actually* be a superhero (not just dress like one!) and take steps to prevent this from happening!

The Fourth of July is coming up next week and if you’re lucky, you’ll be celebrating for the long weekend. As you enjoy the holiday and the summer weather, make sure that you’re thinking not only of our country, but also of our environment and what you can do to keep your celebration debris-free. Take some of these tips into consideration when planning your festivities and have a fun, safe, and clean Fourth of July weekend!

What do dad jokes and marine debris have in common? We’re hoping not to see too much of either this Father’s Day! But, while we might have to deal with a few dad jokes, we shouldn’t have to deal with marine debris. So let’s work to celebrate Dad without contributing to this extremely preventable problem. While you’re celebrating the father in your life, make sure you’re keeping our environment in mind too. Staying at home to enjoy the backyard and a barbecue? Skip the disposable utensils, cups, and plates and use the real stuff. Make sure any trash you do produce gets disposed of properly and recycled if possible.

This past Saturday was National Get Outdoors Day— did you participate? It’s getting to be that time of year when the weather is beautiful and being outside is awesome. Unfortunately, when you’re enjoying the outdoors, you’re likely to run into something that is way too common: marine debris. Sadly, marine debris is a global problem that originates from a variety of sources. That empty chip bag that you see on your street? That can easily find its way to our waters and become marine debris.