Thank you for visiting nature. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer. In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript. Marine litter is one of the most relevant pollution problems that our oceans are facing today. Marine litter in our oceans is a major threat to a sustainable planet.
Here, we provide a comprehensive analysis of cutting-edge solutions developed globally to prevent, monitor and clean marine litter. Prevention in this research includes only innovative solutions to prevent litter entering oceans and seas rather than interventions such as waste reduction and recycling.
On the basis of extensive search and data compilation, our analysis reveals that information is dispersed across platforms and is not easily accessible. Few solutions reached mature technical readiness and market availability, while none were validated for efficiency and environmental impact.
Looking ahead, we elaborate on the limitations of the existing solutions, the challenges of developing new solutions, and provide recommendations for funding schemes and policy instruments to prevent, monitor and clean marine litter globally. In doing so, we encourage researchers, innovators and policy-makers worldwide to act towards achieving and sustaining a cleaner ocean for future generations.
The quasi-exponential increase in marine litter or debris since the s has been reported from as early as the early s 1. Two decades later, marine litter was already considered to be one of the most relevant pollution problems that our oceans and planet are facing 2 , 3. Meanwhile, a growing number of scientists and studies have highlighted its impacts on biota, socioeconomy and human health 10 , 11 , With this increasing accumulation of marine litter, societies, policy-makers and industry now seem to understand the importance of developing and deploying solutions for tackling marine litter.
