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Trash & floating debris

Plastic and other litter, lost fishing gear and storm debris drifting to shore.

Why it is a problem

Animals get entangled in nets and lines or swallow plastic; lost fishing gear keeps catching fish ('ghost fishing').
Plastic breaks into microplastics (pieces under 5 mm), which are hard to remove (NOAA). [source]
An estimated 4.8 to 12.7 million tonnes of plastic entered the ocean from land in 2010 (Jambeck et al. 2015); about 11 million tonnes a year now, which could nearly triple by 2040 without action (Pew & SYSTEMIQ 2020, cited by UNEP). [source] [source] [source]

Where it comes from: mostly land-based litter carried by rivers, storm drains and wind; plus fishing gear and waste from ships.
How it moves: with currents and 0.5-5% of the wind depending on how high it floats; it collects in convergence zones and in sargassum windrows. 'Garbage patches' are not islands of trash but areas with more, mostly small, debris (NOAA). [source]
How we track it: NOAA IncidentNews and public reports; satellite debris detection is still research.
Law: MARPOL Annex V prohibits discharging plastics from ships. [source]

Everyone: Reduce single-use plastic, bin litter, join beach clean-ups.
Fishers & boaters: Bring all waste back to port; mark and recover gear (FAO gear-marking guidelines). [source]
Industry & policy: Better waste collection and recycling on land, extended producer responsibility (UNEP). [source]

Do not touch oil, tar balls, dead animals or unknown containers; keep children and pets away; never board a derelict vessel.

Anywhere at sea: Call the local coast guard on VHF channel 16 or your country's emergency number. Give position, time, what you see, and photos if safe.
United States (incl. Puerto Rico, USVI, Gulf coast): Oil or chemical spills: US Coast Guard National Response Center, 1-800-424-8802 (24 h), nrc.uscg.mil. Derelict vessels: state contacts in NOAA's ADV InfoHub.
Florida red tide / fish kills: FWC fish kill hotline 1-800-636-0511, or report online at myfwc.com. Health questions: Florida Poison Information Center 1-800-222-1222.
Mexico: Emergencies 911. Navy (SEMAR) for pollution at sea; environmental complaints to PROFEPA.
Brazil: Maritime emergencies 185 (Marinha do Brasil). Environmental reports: IBAMA (Linha Verde).
Chile: Maritime emergencies 137 (DIRECTEMAR, free, nationwide).
Argentina: Nautical emergencies 106 (Prefectura Naval Argentina).
Colombia, Peru, Central America and others: Contact the national maritime authority / coast guard (e.g. DIMAR in Colombia, DICAPI in Peru) or the local port captain.
Also on this site: Use Report an incident on the map. Reports appear marked unverified. This site does not alert authorities for you.