Marine Debris Cleanup 2,049 MT in Q2 2020 OCA continues with cleanup
According to the statistics of the Ocean Conservation Administration (OCA) of the Ocean Affairs Council (OAC), the volume of marine debris cleanup (including beach litter and float ing (seafloor) marine debris) in Q2 (April-June) 2020 of 19 coastal counties and cities totaled 2,049 MT. The sources of marine debris cleaned up in Q2 2020 included beach litter, floating marine debris, seafloor marine debris, ship garbage, and shore debris. A total of about 474 MT (23.13%) was cleaned up from coastal areas, about 388 MT (18.94%) from surfa ce waters, about 2 MT from the seabed (0.09%), about 621 MT (30.33%) from ships, and about 564 MT (27.51%) from the shore. In addition, about 6.4% of marine sea debris is recyclabl e, while about 93.6% is non-recyclable. The types of recyclable marine debris include glass bottles (1.27%), PE bottles (3.91%), scrapped paper (0.21%), iron cans (0.64%), and alum inum cans (0.37%). The types of non-recyclable marine debris include scrapped fishing gears (3.28%), wood (8.49%), styrofoam (3.59%), and other waste (78.24%). The volume of the ma rine debris cleaned up in Q2 2020, compared to Q2 2019 (2827 MT), was reduced by 775 MT but increased by 437 MT, compared to Q1 this year. The OCA will continue to observe the conn ection between the changes in marine debris and the pandemic this year. In addition, other waste at 78.24% (about 1,603 MT of unspecified general waste) was the highest among all t ypes of marine debris in Q2. The OCA promotes the marine cleanup alliance to protect the marine environment through public-private partnerships in collaboration with the environmen tal protection fleets, the diver team, and citizen observers who help collect marine debris.
Responsible entity and spokesperson: OCA Deputy Director-General Hsin-Chen Sung
Mobile: 0905-205-669