1 Introduction 5
1.1 The Garbage Patch 6
1.2 Environmental Impacts of Garbage Patch 10
2 Existing Legislation 11
2.1 Legislation in the US 11
2.2 Legislation in the EU 12
2.3 International Regulations 12
3 Stakeholders Analysis 13
3.1 Prevention, Reduction, Management 13
3.2 Government’s Role 13
3.3 Education 13
3.4 Developing and Near-Development Countries 14
3.4.1 Latin America 14
3.4.2 Asia 14
4 Solutions 15
4.1 Shore Cleanups 15
4.2 Economic Impact 15
4.3 Best Practices – Private/Nonprofit Partnerships 16
4.4 Enforcement and Monitoring 17
4.5 Research and Technology Developments 17
5. Conclusions 17
REFERENCES 19
3
LIST OF FIGURES AND TABLES
Figure 1 Satellite-tracked surface drifting buoy 5
Figure 2 A model simulation of the projected distribution of marine litter in the
ocean in ten year 6
Figure 3 Average plastic concentration in the western North Atlantic Ocean 8
Table 1: Summary Calculations of Garbage Patches 10