About This Project

Up to 11 million tons of plastic enter the ocean each year, impacting wildlife and entering the human food chain in the form of microplastics. This pollution is particularly troubling in Florida, where there is little to no regulation of plastic products. How pervasive is this problem in Florida? This project expands an existing study to remove plastic pollution from the ecosystem, gather plastic pollution data, and analyze microplastic data to inform policy solutions.

Ask the Scientists

What is the context of this research?

Our ocean is filled with plastic that chokes wildlife, litters beaches, and enters the human food chain in the form of microplastics. In Florida, there is little to no regulation of single-use plastics, and very little information on the prevalence of microplastic pollution in Florida's sandy beaches, including its sources. Existing studies have focused exclusively on water sampling. Building on the success of Surfrider's successful Healthy Beaches Program and an existing beach sand microplastic sampling pilot in Palm Beach County, microplastic data collection and analysis from sandy beaches of Broward County will help decision makers understand the most common sources of plastic pollution in Florida beaches and inform policy decisions.

What is the significance of this project?

Clean beaches are paramount in Florida with 825 miles of sandy beach habitat that contributes to a more than $121 billion tourism economy statewide. These beaches, and the economies, communities, and wildlife that rely on them, are threatened by the growing presence of plastic pollution, and increasingly, microplastic pollution. Despite limited research on the prevalence of microplastics in Florida waterways, there has been little to no study on its presence in sandy beach habitats.

Given the importance of healthy beaches in Florida, meaningful action to address plastic pollution is urgently needed. But, what is needed to create that meaningful policy is data to better understand how to best address this problem. That is what this project seeks to do.

What are the goals of the project?

The goals are to expand a sampling pilot to increase microplastics research in South Florida, drive local policy solutions to prevent plastic pollution, and vet the applicability of launching a national microplastic program. Our network will host 6 beach cleanups over 6 months in Broward County implementing Surfrider’s Beach Sand Microplastic Sampling Methodology to collect and analyze microplastics in sandy beaches to identify the density and types of microplastics and explore data management in the Beach Cleanup Database. Findings and recommendations will be published in a microplastics report for Broward County and disseminated to the public via a social media campaign, Surfrider’s Beach Cleanup Report, and direct outreach to state and local elected officials.