EPA outlines global strategy for combating marine litter

EPA has released a comprehensive strategy for combating marine litter throughout the world.

EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler was joined by U.S. Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., Department of Energy Deputy Secretary Mark Menezes and other environmental leaders during an announcement at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton.

Wheeler said it is estimated that 11 to 28 billion pounds of waste fill the world’s waterways, harming marine life and coastal economies.

“The United States Federal Strategy for Addressing the Global Issue of Marine Litter” outlines the four pillars for success — building capacity for better waste management systems, incentivizing the global recycling market, promoting research and development for innovative solutions and technology, and promoting marine litter removal.

“Oceans are our shared resource,” Wheeler said. “This makes it our collective responsibility to work together to tackle the problem.”

Wheeler said the publication “spells out in detail a holistic nationwide approach to combating marine litter that can be replicated and adapted throughout the world.”