Dear Sviatoslav,
Discarded,
lost, abandoned and silently killing our
planet's marine life. Ghost gear, which is
fishing gear left behind in our ocean, is the deadliest form
of marine plastic debris.
In fact, did
you know that almost half of the Great Pacific
Garbage Patch – the largest area of marine
debris in the world – is made up of
ghost gear? Plastic pollution is now one of the
fastest-growing global environmental problems
that affect our ocean, and we need to take
urgent action to help protect nature and people.
As you're
reading this, marine animals around the world
are being subjected to a slow and painful death
due to abandoned fishing gear. It also damages
vital marine habitats such as coral reefs and
mangroves, and threatens the food sources and
livelihoods of coastal communities and fishers.
And yet, amid this intensifying plastic
pollution crisis, not enough attention is being
paid to it by governments or
industry.
Join us in calling for
action to stop ghost gear from drowning the
marine life we all depend on.