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U.S. Department of Energy
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Plastic pollution in the marine environment. Hearing before the National Ocean Policy Study of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, United States Senate, One Hundredth Congress, First Session, July 29, 1987

Book ·
OSTI ID:5719801
A hearing on the disposal of plastic wastes in the marine environment brought testimony from representatives of the fishing industry, the shipping industry, the plastics industry, and environmental groups. The disposal of plastics in the ocean is so ubiquitous that it can be compared to nonpoint sources of pollution such as acid rain or agricultural runoff. In that respect, it may be one of the most difficult sources of pollution to effectively monitor or to control and is a problem of immense proportions. The impacts are not confined to aesthetics, as each year hundreds of thousands of sea birds and marine mammals perish as they consume or become entangled in plastic debris. Even human life is threatened when vessels become disabled as their propellers become fouled in plastic debris.
OSTI ID:
5719801
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English