"My husband is a commercial fisherman," 

 she adds. "Last year he never thought about 

 tossing stuff overboard. But this year he 

 brings it back in." 



Thanks to a new project in Oregon, other 

 fishermen are changing their habits, too. 



The National Marine Fisheries Service, 

 Oregon Sea Grant and the Port of Newport 

 organized programs to boost public aware- 

 ness of marine debris. They did not target 

 commercial fishermen, says Goblirsch, but 

 realized that the nets, rope, gear and litter 

 added to the problem. 



Letters, signs and the media urged people 

 to "Show Care for Wildlife, Keep Plastic on 

 Board." 



And last year, NMFS gave the Port of 

 Newport a $97,000 grant for a model refuse 

 disposal project. With education, an incinera- 

 tor and adequate refuse facilities at the port, 

 the town hopes to demonstrate what fisher- 

 men, boaters and merchant ship crews can do 

 voluntarily to reduce the amount of debris 

 going into the ocean. 



The problems are different in Texas. Tour- 

 ists and the Gulf Stream currents produce 

 tons of debris on Texas beaches daily. The 

 currents catch the ocean's garbage and, with 

 strong winds, carry it to shore. 



To combat the problem, forces have joined 

 in Texas. 



An "Adopt the Beach" program allows 

 businesses, organizations or individuals to 

 claim a section of the beach and clean it at 

 least three times a year. 



And beach patrols in certain areas notify, 

 and often fine, litterbugs. 



One of the most successful campaigns has 

 been "Texas Coastal Cleanup," sponsored by 

 the Center for Environmental Education, (see 

 story, page 2). 



Charlie Moss, a Texas Sea Grant county 

 extension agent, assisted in the cleanup. Now 

 it's his job to identify the offshore point 

 sources of debris. Freighters, ocean liners, oil 

 rigs and platforms are among the culprits. 



Currently, no laws prohibit anyone from 

 dumping trash beyond the 200-mile interna- 

 tional water line, Moss says. 



But the United States is expected to ratify 

 its part of an international provision prohibit- 

 ing ocean dumping of plastics. 



To become law. Annex V of the MARPOL 

 treaty must be ratified by nations represent- 

 ing 50 percent of the world's gross tonnage of 

 debris. So far, 26 nations — or 44 percent — 

 have ratified it. The United States (4 percent) 

 and Soviet Union (5.8 percent) could make 

 the difference. 



In addition, seven bills regarding the 

 disposal of plastics and marine debris in U.S. 

 waters are pending in Congress. And numer- 

 ous state legislatures and research organiza- 



tions are taking a closer look at the issue. 



In North Carolina, the law keeps some 

 people from trashing the beaches. Anyone 

 caught littering on land or up to 3 miles 

 offshore faces a fine or imprisonment. 



A grass roots effort brews in the state to 

 remedy the litter problem. 



For four years, Bill Pinkstone and other 

 members of the N.C. Beach Buggy Associa- 

 tion have collected trash three times a year 

 along the Cape Hatteras National Seashore. 



"Operation Beach Respect" drew nearly 

 3,000 volunteers in a recent pickup, says 

 Pinkstone, director of the BBA. "We believe 

 that it is working, that people are more con- 

 scious of it now." 



"We've been lucky that individual groups 

 have had the time to pick up litter," says 

 Lundie Spence, Sea Grant's marine education 

 specialist. 



But Spence cautions that not enough are 

 aware of the problem. "A litter-free beach 

 means that everyone on the beach 'packs it 

 back' — takes it home," she says. 



That's exactly why Jessie Bush of Nags 

 Head joined the fight. 



Bush, who describes herself as an environ- 

 mentally concerned citizen, had been reading 

 about wildlife entanglement in her maga- 

 zines. She knew she lived in a popular tourist 

 area and believed education might heighten 

 awareness of marine debris and its effects on 

 wildlife. 



So she wrote letters, picked up trash, 

 talked to people, wrote more letters and 

 made calls. 



Progress was slow, but one thing led to 

 another. 



In March, with the help of a local artist and 

 the Dare County Board of Commissioners, an 

 illustrated poster was published. It pleads, 

 "Help Save Our Wildlife, Plastic Litter Kills." 



Bush and her helpers distributed the pos- 

 ters in fish houses, restaurants, businesses, 

 marinas, piers and homes. 



"Reception has been remarkable," says 

 artist Che Greenlee. "Since this is an emo- 

 tional issue, this is something people can 

 relate to." 



Articles, radio announcements and 

 speeches at local clubs brought the issue 

 home. And already, plans are in the works for 

 a 70-piece slide show at the N.C. Aquarium 

 on Roanoke Island, public service 

 announcements and another poster. 



And Bush wants to involve state govern- 

 ment in regulation and legislation of marine 

 debris. 



"Somehow the message has to get 

 through," Bush says. 

 One person. 

 One goal. 

 One ocean. 



