When you travel outside this summer, what you hope to witness is majestic wildlife, crystal clear waters, and flourishing ecosystems. Yet no matter where you go, what you will most likely encounter is plastic pollution. Regardless of whether you spend your summer taking a dip in Lake Superior, surfing off the coast of San Diego, or kayaking on the Delaware River, plastic pollution is present everywhere.
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Why is there so much plastic pollution?
The global production of plastic waste each year amounts to 350 million tonnes, with around 38 million tonnes from the United States alone. The vast majority of plastic waste is never recycled. As a result, scientists estimate that each year, around 19 million tonnes of plastic waste leaks into the environment.Â
A large portion of the plastic pollution in the environment comes from plastic pellets, or nurdles. Plastic pellets are tiny plastic beads used to manufacture other plastic products such as water bottles or toothbrushes. They are transported to factories by train or ship, and many spill along the way. About 10 trillion nurdles are estimated to enter the ocean annually.
Nurdles are a type of microplastic because they are less than 5 millimeters in size. Due to their small size and large numbers, the pellets are nearly impossible to remove from the environment once they have been released. That means every time plastic pellets enter our environment, they remain for hundreds or even thousands of years.
Where is there plastic pellet pollution?
No one wants to go swimming, or to lay on a beach, and find themselves amongst small plastic nurdles. Yet that is the reality of aquatic ecosystems in the United States. A recent International Plastic Pellet Count organized by Environment America found roughly 50,000 nurdles from bodies of water across the country and world. Locations included:
The Great Lakes
On the Great Lakes, summer-goers enjoy a variety of aquatic activities from paddle boarding to fishing to scuba diving. Yet a cleanup of Lake Erie in May that took place right outside Cleveland found 120 nurdles in just 10 minutes. These nurdles contribute to the massive levels of microplastics that pervade the soil and waters of the Great Lakes. A recent study also found that the fish in the Great Lakes had one of the highest reported levels of microplastics worldwide.Â
West Coast
In California, surfers and beachgoers regularly encounter nurdles. Along the Southern coast in San Diego County, nurdles are extremely prevalent, littering the beaches and hiding between particles of sand. Pellets were also found in Oregon, Washington and Alaska.
East Coast
Across the country, in South Carolina, a recent cleanup of Charleston’s tidal marsh yielded a count of 1,133 nurdles collected. Unfortunately, this number was unsurprising for many, as Charleston’s beaches have the highest concentration of nurdle pollution outside the Gulf of America.
Nurdles have been found in Virginia, Maryland and New England as well.
The Gulf
 The Gulf, especially Texas, is an epicenter of plastic production and plastic pellet pollution. Volunteers and waterkeepers have found thousands of pellets at Texas beaches and waterways.
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Plastic pellets harm wildlife
How do these nurdles harm wildlife?
Beyond being a general nuisance to your summer vacation, nurdles are also causing serious harm to wildlife across the country. More than 200 animal species have been found to ingest microplastic, particularly fish and birds who mistake nurdles for food.Â
For fish, nurdles can cause a variety of health issues, including cell damage, starvation, and decreased oxygen intake. Seabirds have similar problems as fish. For example, scientists recently found that there was an average of two nurdles in the stomachs of Northern fulmars, a type of seabird.
Residents of the Atlantic coast, from Florida to Maine, can appreciate a range of sea turtle species on their beaches. Yet turtle hatchlings, who eat fish eggs, may ingest nurdles by mistake. If a turtle eats enough plastic, it can starve to death. As an already endangered group of species, sea turtles cannot afford this additional threat to their survival.
The beautiful fish, sea turtles, birds, and other wildlife that we have all grown up loving are being lethally threatened.Â
What can you do?
You can help by looking for nurdles in your local waterway. Going on a plastic pellet count can take as a little as ten minutes, while contributing to citizen science and building support in your community for Plastic Pellet Free Waters. See our guide below for how you can help.
Toolkit for The International Plastic Pellet Count
Authors
Natalie Greene is a student at University of California – Berkeley and a federal legislative intern at Environment America on the Plastic Pellet Free Waters Campaign.
Lisa leads Environment America’s work for a greener, healthier world. She also directs The Public Interest Network’s Washington, D.C., office and operations. A pragmatic idealist, Lisa has helped win billions of dollars in investments in clean energy and transportation and developed strategic campaigns to protect America’s oceans, forests and public lands. Lisa is an Oregonian transplant to the Capital region, where she loves hiking, running, biking, and cooking for friends and family.
