Coastwatch
Micro-litter Survey
Micro-litter is small pieces of litter, the upper size limits are 5mm diameter, and 2cm long if it’s a thin filament.
Marine micro litter may start up as a raw plastic pellet or nurdle discharged from industrial process or lost as cargo at sea; or it can be micro ingredient like the micro bead in face scrubs, then enter the sea via sewage outfalls, or it started as a larger material which is breaking down like the plastic sheet and the plastic twine. Plastic never biodegrades, but with the sunlight it splits into ever and ever smaller pieces ("photodegradation"). These bits are still plastic. The pieces get so small, that in the end they are ingested by over 180 known marine species, being mistaken for food and thus entering the food chain and ending up on your plate!
​
Find out more - European Commission - Marine Litter (Descriptor 19)
​
Please, use our visible micro litter app. It was designed to do three things:
1. Enable us to tell where what micro litter was observed when;
2. Make people more aware of micro litter;
3. Help identify and then tackle micro litter sources - from identifying plastic pellet spills at sea to places where micro litter is generated -boat yards- to locations where the sea shreds macro into micro litter.
OPTION 1 - From a web browser
​You don't need to download anything, but you will need to have an internet connection while you are in the field. Click here and the micro litter app will open in your phone’s web browser (Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Safari…). You will be able to complete and submit the survey immediately.
OPTION 2 - From the Survey123 App
Step 1: If you don't have the ‘Survey123 for ArcGis’ app on your device, download it here for Android and iPhone.
​
Step 2: Once you have downloaded the app, don't open it immediately, first come back to this website and click the following link to view the Micro-litter Survey in the app. You will only have to do this once.
Using the Survey123 app you will be able to complete the survey even if you don’t have an internet connection. The data collected will be saved so you can submit it when you are back at home. This is also the recommended option if you have a limited data plan, this way you can wait until you have access to WiFi to submit the data.
​
You can watch this short tutorial video
​
Need help? Click here to see detailed instructions or contact us: survey@coastwatch.org
Summary of Results
Did you find micro litter?
Last updated 01/05/2018
Shore position where micro litter was found
Last updated 01/05/2018
Types of visible micro litter found
Last updated 01/05/2018