THE FACTS

  1. An estimated 11 million metric tons of plastic waste enters the ocean every year. Without immediate and sustained action, that amount will nearly triple by 2040, to 29 million metric tons per year. That’s the same as dumping 110 pounds (50 kilograms) of plastic on every meter of coastline around the world. [1]

  2. Preventing the vast majority of plastic from entering the ocean requires reducing plastic use. [1]

  3. At least half of Earth’s oxygen comes from the ocean. [2]

  4. Protecting the ocean is crucial in mitigating climate change. [2]

  5. There are 20,000 plastic bottles used every second. [10]

  6. It is estimated that the ocean concentrates 50 times more carbon than the atmosphere. [3]

  7. The Canadian plastics economy is mostly linear, with an estimated 9% of plastic waste recycled, 4% incinerated with energy recovery, 86% landfilled [4]

  8. Water in the hands of private companies [big water bottle companies] is a threat to safe drinking water, which is a human right. [5]

  9. Five major “garbage patches” have formed in the ocean. If you tried to clean up less than 1% of the North Pacific Ocean it would take 67 ships one year to clean up that portion. [6]

  10. Plastic doesn’t completely decompose, so it remains on land or in the ocean for centuries. [7]

  11. The ocean holds about 97% of the world’s water and supports 90% of the planet’s biosphere. [8]

  12. There is so much plastic waste in the ocean that by 2050 there will be more plastic in the ocean by weight than there will be fish. [11]

  13. Over 100,000 marine mammals and over one million seabirds that swallow plastic are killed annually. [11]