[From the U.S. Government Printing Office, www.gpo.gov]









         NOAA Technical Report NMIFS 108                                                April 1992


                         Marine Debris Survey Manual



                         Christine A. Ribic
                         Trevor R. Dixon
                         Ivan Vining












                                        x









      SHII               U.S. Department of Commerce
      .A44672
      no.108







                                                        NOAA Technical Reports NMFS

                   The major responsibilities of the National Marine Fish-             continuing programs of NMFS; intensive scientific reports
                 eries Service (NMFS) are to monitor and assess the abun-              on studies of restricted scope; papers on applied fishery
                 dance and geographic distribution of fishery resources, to            problems; technical reports of general interest intended to
                 understand and predict fluctuations in the quantity and               aid conservation and management; reports that review, in
                 distribution of these resources, and to establish levels for          considerable detail and at a high technical level, certain
                 their optimum use. NMFS is also charged with the devel-               broad areas of research; and technical papers originating
                 opment and implementation of policies for managing na-                in economics studies and in management investigations.
                 tional fishing grounds, with the development and                      Since this is a formal series, all submitted papers, except
                 enforcement of domestic fisheries regulations, with the sur-          those of the U.S.-Japan series on aquaculture, receive peer
                 veillance of foreign fishing off U.S. coastal waters, and             review and all papers, once accepted, receive professional
                 with the development and enforcement of international                 editing before publication.
                 fishery agreements and policies. NMFS also assists the
                 fishing industry through marketing service and economic                 Copies of NOAA Technical Reports NMFS are avail-
                 analysis programs and through mortage insurance and                   able free in limited numbers to government agencies, both
                 vessel construction subsidies.       It collects, analyzes, and       federal and state. They are also available in exchange for
                 publishes statistics on various phases of the industry.               other scientific and technical publications in the marine
                                                                                       sciences. Individual copies may be obtained from the
                   The NOAA Technical Report NMFS series was                  estab-   U.S. Department of Commerce, National Technical Infor-
                 lished in 1983 to replace two subcategories of the           Tech-    mation Service, 5285 Port Royal Road, Springfield, VA
                 nical Report series: "Special Scientific Report -Fisheries"           22161. Although the contents of these reports have not
                 and "Circular." The series contains the following types of            been copyrighted and may be reprinted entirely, reference
                 reports: scientific investigations that document long-term            to source is appreciated.




                                             Recently Published NOAA Technical Reports NMFS

                    96.    Marine flora and fauna of the eastern United                102.  Marine ranching: proceedings of the seventeenth
                           States--Copepoda, Cyclopoida: Archinotodelphy-                    U.S.-Japan meeting on aquaculture; Ise, Mie
                           idae, Notodelphyidae, and Ascidicolidae, by Patricia              Prefecture, Japan, 16-18 October 1988, edited by
                           L. Dudley and Paul L. 111g. January 1991, 40 p.                   Ralph S. Svrjcek. May 199 1, 180 p.

                    97.    Catalog of osteological collections of aquatic mam-         103.  Benthic macrofauna of the New York Bight,
                           mals from Mexico, by Omar Vidal. January 1991,                    1979-89, by Robert N. Reid, David J. Radosh, Ann B.
                           36 p.                                                             Frame, and Steven A. Fromm. December 1991, 50 p.

                    98.    Marine mammal strandings in the United States.              104.  Incidental catch of marine mammals by foreign
                           proceedings of the second marine mammal                           and joint venture trawl vessels in the U.S. EEZ of
                           stranding workshop; Miami, Florida, 3-5 Decem-                    the North Pacific, 1973-88, by Michael A. Perez and
                           ber, 1987, edited by John E. Reynolds III and Daniel              Thomas R. Loughlin. December 1991, 57 p.
                           K. Odell. January 1991, 157 p.
                                                                                       105.  Biology, oceanography, and fisheries of the North
                    99.    Marine flora and fauna of the northeastern United                 Pacific transition zone and subarctic frontal zone,
                           States: erect Bryozoa, by John S. Ryland and Peter                edited byJcrry A. Wetherall. December 1991, 92 p.
                           J. Hayward. February 1991, 48 p.
                                                                                       106.  Marine ranching: proceedings of the eighteenth
                    100.   Marine flora and fituna of the eastern United States:             U.S.-Japan meeting on aquaculture; Port Ludlow,
                           Dicyemida, by Robert B. Short, February 1991, 16 p.               Washington, 18-19 September 1989, edited by Ralph
                                                                                             S. Svdcek. February 1992, 136 p.
                    101.   Larvae of nearshore fishes in oceanic waters near
                           Oahu, Hawaii, by Thomas A. Clarke. March 1991, 107.               Field guide to the searobins (P@ionotus and Bel-
                           19 P.                                                             lator) in the western North Atlantic, by Mike Russell,
                                                                                             Mark Grace, and Elmerj. Gutherz. March 1992, 26 p.


SH11.A44672 NO.108
FEB 19, 1996

                                                 NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108



                                                 Marine Debris Survey Manual




                                                 Christine A. Ribic
                                                 U.S. EPA Environmental Research Laboratory
                                                 Corvallis, OR

                                                 Trevor R. Dixon
                                                 The Tidy Britain Group
                                                 United Kingdom
                                                 Ivan Vining
                                                 Center for Quantitative Science
                                                 University of Washington
                                                 Seattle, WA




                                                 April 1992


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE


                                	             U.S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
                                                 Barbara Hackman Franklin, Secretary
                                                 National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
                                                 John A. Knauss, Under Secretary for Oceans and Atmosphere
                                                 National Marine Fisheries Service
                                 			 William W. Fox Jr., Assistant Administrator for Fisheries



                                                      LIBRARY
                                                    NOAA/CCEH
                                                 1990 HOBSON AVE.
                                                  SC 29408-2623
 






























































                                                             The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) does not approve,
                                                             recommend or endorse any proprietary product or proprietary
                                                             material mentioned in this publication. No reference shall be made
                                                             to NMFS, or to this publication furnished by NMFS, in any adver-
                                                             tising or sales promotion which would indicate or imply that NMFS
                                                             approves, recommends or endorses any proprietary product or pro-
                                                             prietary material mentioned herein, or which has as its purpose
                                                             an intent to cause directly or indirectly the advertised product to
                                                             be used or purchased because of this NMFS publication.








                                                       Contents


            Introduction                                                                                         v

            How to Use This Manual                                                                               vi

            Chapter 1: Methodologv                                                                               I
                   Definition and Categories of Marine Debris                                                    4
                   General Monitoring Guidelines                                                                 8
            Chapter 2: Shipboard Sighting Surveysfor Large Debris Item                                         13
                   General Description                                                                         13
                   Objectives and Purpose                                                                      13
                   Population of Interest                                                                      13
                   Field Measurement                                                                           13
                   Quality Assurance Program                                                                   17
                   Field Sampling Designs                                                                      18
                   Analytical Procedures                                                                       18
                   Summary                                                                                     19
                   Appendix                                                                                    20
            Chapter 3: Shipboard Trawling Surveysfor Small Debris Item                                         25
                   General Description                                                                         25
                   Objectives and Purpose                                                                      25
                   Population of Interest                                                                      25
                   Field Measurement                                                                           25
                   Quality Assurance Program                                                                   30
                   Field Sampling Designs                                                                      31
                   Analytical Procedures                                                                       31
                   Summary                                                                                     32
                   Appendix                                                                                    33
            Chapter 4: Beach Surveysfor Small to Large Debris Item                                             37
                   General Description                                                                         37
                   Objectives and Purpose                                                                      37
                   Population of Interest                                                                      37
                   Historical Information                                                                      38
                   Field Measurement                                                                           39
                   Pilot Studies                                                                               40
                   Quality Assurance Program                                                                   42
                   Field Sampling Designs                                                                      42
                   Analytical Procedures                                                                       47
                   Case Studies                                                                                47
                       Alaska Beach Surveys                                                                    48
                       The Tidy Britain Group                                                                  49
                   Summary                                                                                     53
                   Appendix                                                                                    54







          Chapter 5.- Benthic Surveysfor Large Submerged Debris Items                                    61
                 General Description                                                                     61
                 Objectives and Purpose                                                                  61
                 Population of Interest                                                                  61
                 Historical Information                                                                  61
                 Trawl Surveys                                                                           62
                      Field Measurement                                                                  62
                      Quality Assurance Program                                                          63
                      Field Sampling Designs                                                             65
                      Analytical Procedures                                                              66
                 Submersible Surveys                                                                     67
                      Field Measurement                                                                  67
                      Quality Assurance Program                                                          68
                      Field Sampling Designs                                                             69
                      Analytical Procedures                                                              69
                 Diving Surveys                                                                          69
                      Field Measurement                                                                  69
                      Quality Assurance Program                                                          71
                      Analytical Procedures                                                              73
                 Summary                                                                                 73
                 Appendix                                                                                74
          Chapter 6. Aerial Surveys                                                                      77
                      General Considerations                                                             77
                      Aerial Photography                                                                 77
                      Conclusion                                                                         78

          Glossary                                                                                       79
          List of Acronyms                                                                               81

          Citations                                                                                      83



















                                                          iv







                                                                 Introduction


              Over the last several years, concern has increased about           and four anonymous reviewers. Any remaining errors or
              the amount of man-made materials lost or discarded at              omissions are ours. For the technical editing of this
              sea and the potential impacts to the envifonment. The              manual, we wish to thank Marcus Duke of the School of
              scope of the problem depends on the amounts and types              Fisheries, University of Washington.
              of debris. One problem in making a regional compari-                 For the Tidy Britain Group case study, the survey data
              son of debris is the lack of a standard methodology. The           and other information were compiled as part of the Tidy
              objective of this manual is to discuss designs and method-         Britain Group's Marine Utter Research Programme and
              ologies for assessment studies of marine debris.                   from joint studies with the Advisory Committee on Pollu-
                 This manual has been written for managers, research-            tion of the Sea. Tim Dixon was a co-researcher, with addi-
              ers, and others who are just entering this area of study           tional support from the Keep Wales Tidy Campaign and
              and who seek guidance in designing marine debris sur-              the University of Keele. Technical assistance was provided
              veys. Active researchers will be able to use this manual           by the British Plastics Federation.
              along with applicable references herein as a source for              We thank Cindy Helfrich for typing the many drafts of
              design improvement. To this end, the authors have syn-             this manual and illustrator Sandrajohnson for the cover
              thesized their work and reviewed survey techniques that            drawing. We thank the National Marine Fisheries Service
              have been used in the past for assessing marine debris,            Marine Entanglement Research Program for the use of
              such as sighting surveys, beach surveys, and trawl surveys,        their slides of marine debris, which served as inspiration
              and have considered new methods (e.g., aerial photogra-            for the drawing.
              phy). All techniques have been put into a general survey             The senior author's salary was provided by the U.S.
              planning framework to assist in developing different ma-           Environmental Protection Agency. The manual has been
              rine debris surveys.                                               subjected to the Agency's peer and administrative review,
                 We thank the following people who discussed the dif-            and has been approved for publication.
              ferent survey methodologies with us: Jay Brueggeman,                 This manual was the result of discussions held at the
              Ray Highsmith, Scott Johnson, Barry Troutman, and                  Sixth Session of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic
              Heather Trulli. We thank David Redford for allowing us             Commission's Working Group on the Global Investiga-
              to use EPA SOP No. 4-35. We thank the Center for Ma-               tion of Pollution in the Marine Environment (25 Sep-
              rine Conservation, the Environmental Protection-Agency,            tember-I October 1986). The Marine Mammal Commis-
              the Tidy Britain Group, Scott Johnson, Linda Jones, Jef-           sion recommended that the National Marine Fisheries
              frey June and Heather Trulli for the use of their data             Service Marine Entanglement Research Program take on
              forms.                                                             the effort of producing a procedures manual and drafted
                 We thank the following people for reviewing various             the original scope of work for this project.
              drafts and parts of this manual: James Coe, E. David                 Major funding was provided by the National Marine
              Ford, Donald Gunderson, James Herkelrath, Scott John-              Fisheries Service Marine Entanglement Research Program
              son, Linda Jones, Jeffrey June, Theodore Merrell, Tho-             to the University of Washington (Contract No. 52ABNF-
              mas W. Miller, David Redford, David Rugg, and Heather              0-00071).
              Trulli.
                 We thank the following people for reviewing the entire                               Christine A- Ribic, Research Ecologist
              manual: Marcia Bollman (editorial review), Deborah                                                  Corvallis, August 31, 1991
              Coffey (quality assur-ance review), David Laist, Tony Olsen,







                                                How to Use This Man'ual


              We do not expect the user to read this manual from          scope of this manual and discussion of the general ar-
            cover to cover. We expect specific chapters will be of        rangement of this manual are explained in Chapter 1.
            more interest to the user than others..Thus, we have          Therefore, we reco'mmend that the user read Chapter 1 before
            made the chapters self-contained. However, the general        reading any other chapark.


















































                                                                       A






                                                                Chapter I

                                                              Methodologv


               In the late 1960s and 1970s, trash and other debris        flects the total amount of debris entering over a
             of human origin in the ocean began to be recognized          longer time period. Second, synthetic materials often
             as a widespread problem (Risebrough 1969;                    are less expensive than the natural fibers they re-
             Heyerdahl 1971; Colton 1974; NAS 1975). Various              place, thereby decreasing incentives to reuse or
             solid materials of human origin were becoming in-            recycle items. Third, and most obvious, there are sim-
             creasingly apparent both on beaches and floating at          ply more ships and coastal residents that can lose or
             sea. The debris then, as now, typically included der-        discard materials.
             elict fishing gear, plastic bags or sheeting, paper            The impacts from marine debris include
             products, strapping bands, rope, line, cans, bottles,        0  aesthetic degradation (Heyerdahl 1971; NAS
             balloons, plastic pellets, wood planks, clothing, light         1975);
             bulbs, rubber tubes, and gloves. THese items were            0  hazards to wildlife (Laist 1987; Bourne 1990; Ryan
             either discarded or lost at sea or carried to the ocean         1990a; Sileo 1990);
             from land by rivers, domestic and industrial outfalls,       0  economic losses (e.g., damage to boats and fish-
             shoreline runoff, offshore winds, or other means of             ing gear and decreased tourism; Heneman and
             transport. Although scattered records of seats and              the CEE 1988); and
             other marine life entangled in such debris have been         0  human health hazards (e.g., physical injury to
             reported for at least several decades before 1970 (see          bathers, exposure to chemical packaging and pos-
             for example Scheffer 1950), such occurrences were               sible spread of contagious disease [Dixon and
             considered isolated events and the growing amount               Dixon 1981a, 1986; High 1985; Wallace 1985;
             of debris was characterized as a litter problem (NAS
                                                                             Prute@ 1.987a]).
             1975).
               Since the mid-1980s, however, many articles, pa-             Because of the visual aspect of beach litter, beach
             pers, and reports documenting marine debris and its          cleanups by volunteers have been organized to both
             effects have appeared in the popular, scientific, and        educate the public about the extent of the problem
             technical literature (Duerr 1980; Horsman          1982,     and to help mitigate aesthetic effects (Neilson 1985,
             1985; Bourne 1983; Wehle and Coleman 1983;                   Dixon 1987, HMEPA 1991). In the United States,
             Coleman and Wehle 1984; Dean 1985; Gosliner 1985;            state-wide cleanups are now coordinated by the Cen-
             Shomura and Yoshida 1985; Wallace 1985; Carr 1986,           ter for Marine Conservation (O'Hara 1989, CMC
             1987; CEE 1986, 1987a; 1988, Clark 1986; Coe 1986;           1991). Hazards to wildlife have been detailed in
             FoN@_" and Merrell 1986; Azzarello and Van Vleet             many studies. Entanglement- in discarded net frag-
             1987; Bean 1987; FACI 1989; Laist 1987; Lentz 1987;          ments has been of primary concern for impacts to
             Pruter 1987, a and b; Wilber 1987; Wolfe 1987;               marine mammals (Table 1). Ingestion of debris has
             Augerot 1988; Gramentz 1988; Heneman and the                 been reported most frequently for sea birds although
             CEE 1988; MPDTF 1988; O'Hara et al. 1988;                    ingestion by sea turtles, economically important fish,
             Cawthorn 1989; Croxall 1990; Klemm and Wendt                 and cetaceans (Walker and Coe 1990) is of growing
             1990; Parker 1990). This new information describes           concern (Table 1). Impacts on the population level
             problems that are far more widespread and signifi-           have been difficult to document (Laist 1987; Pruter
             cant than previously recognized, and it established          1987a; Ryan 1987a; 1988a; Ryan and Jackson 1987;
             marine debris as another major form of ocean pollu-          Ryan et al. 1988). The most frequently cited and con-
             tion.                                                        troversial (e.g., Scordino 1985) case is the decline of
               The increase in amounts of marine debris over the          the northern fur seal (CalloAinus ursinus) population
             past several decades can be attributed to at least           because of entanglement in discarded fishing nets
             three factors (MMC 1991). First, synthetic materials         (e.g., Fowler 1987; Fowler et al. 1990). Economic
             replaced natural fibers in the manufacture of more           losses (Meade et al. 1990; Takehama 1990) and pub-
             and more everyday items. Because these materials             lic health problems (Dixon 1981, 1987; Dixon and
             tend to degrade more slowly in seawater, the total           Dixon 1981b, 1986; Wagner 1990) have been less
             amount of debris in the ocean at any given time re-          publicized.







                2         NOAA Technical Report NWS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                                                                                         Table I
                                                                  Impacts of marine debris on marine animaIs.

                       Impact                           Animal/Taxon                                       Reference

                       Entanglement                     Monk seal                                          Andre and Itmer (1980)
                                                        (Monachus schauinslandi)                           Balazs (1979)
                                                                                                           Henderson (1984; 1985; 1990)

                                                        Northern fur seal                                  Bigg (1979)
                                                        (Callorhinus ursinus)                              Fowler (1982; 1984; 1985; 1987; 1988)
                                                                                                --------F6w]er and Ragen (1990)
                                                                                                           Fowler et al. (1989)
                                                                                                           Sanger(1974)
                                                                                                           Scheffer (1950)
                                                                                                           Scordino (1985)
                                                                                                           Scordino and Fisher (1983)
                                                                                                           Scordino et al. (1984; 1988)


                                                        Other marine mammals                               Bonner and McCann (1982)
                                                                                                           Calkins (1985)
                                                                                                           Cawthorn (1985)
                                                                                                           Croxall et al. (1990)
                                                                                                           Jones and Ferrero (1985)
                                                                                                           Ryan (1990b)
                                                                                                           Shaughnessy (1980)
                                                                                                           Stewart and Yochem (1985; 1987; 1990)

                                                        Seabirds                                           Conant(1984)
                                                                                                           Dean (1985)
                                                                                                           DeGrange and Newby (1980)
                                                                                                           Ryan (1990b)
                                                                                                           Schrey and Vauk (1987)

                                                        Turtles                                            Balazs (1985)


                       Ingestion                        Seabirds                                           Ainley et al. (1990, a and b)
                                                                                                           Baltz and Morejohn (1976)
                                                                                                           Bayer and Olson (1988)
                                                                                                           Bond (1971)
                                                                                                           Bourne and Imber (1982)
                                                                                                           Connors and Smith (1982)
                                                                                                           Day (1980)
                                                                                                           Day et al. (1985)
                                                                                                           Dickerman and Goelet (1987)
                                                                                                           Fry et al. (1987)
                                                                                                           Furness (1983; 1985, a and b)
                                                                                                           Harper and Fowler (1987)
                                                                                                           Hays and Cormons (1974)
                                                                                                           Kenyon and Kridler (1969)
                                                                                                           Ogi (1990)
                                                                                                           Parslow andjefferies (1972)
                                                                                                           Pettit et al. (1981)
                                                                                                           Randall et al. (1983)
                                                                                                           Rothstein (1973)
                                                                                                           Ryan (1985; 1986; 1987, a and b; 1988c; 1990b)
                                                                                                           Sileo et al. (1990)
                                                                                                           Slip et al. (1990)
                                                                                                           van Franeker (1983; 1985)
                                                                                                           van Franeker and Bell (1988)
                                                                                                           Zonfrillo (1985)







                                                                                                                                CHAPTER 1: Methodolog                3


                                                                                 Table I (continued)

                        Impact                          Animal/Taxon                                     Reference

                                                        Fishes                                           Anonymous (1981)
                                                                                                         Carpenter et al. (1972)
                                                                                                         Hjelmeland et al. (1988)
                                                                                                         Hoss and Settle (1990)
                                                                                                         Kartar et al. (1973, 1976)
                                                                                                         Kubota (1990)
                                                                                                         Ryan (1990b)

                                                        Turtles                                          Balazs (1985)
                                                                                                         Bourne (1985)
                                                                                                         Carr (1987)
                                                                                                         Cawthorn (1985)
                                                                                                         Duronslet et al. (1991)
                                                                                                         Lutz (1990)
                                                                                                         Plotkin and Amos (1990)
                                                                                                         Ryan (1990b)
                                                                                                         Sadove and Morreale (1990)


                                                        Marine mammals                                   Ryan (1990b)
                                                                                                         Sadove and Morreale (1990)
                                                                                                         Walker and Coe (1990)



                    In response to growing concern over marine de-                             groups as well as the public at large. The programs
                 bris, actions have been taken by governments                                  advise the groups about debris-related problems, new
                 nationally as well as internationally to reduce dis-                          regulatory requirements, and proper garbage han-
                 charges at their source (Bean 1984). For example,                             dling and disposal practices.
                 intentional at-sea dumping of garbage generated on                              As these efforts were implemented, it became ap-
                 land became subject to international control as of                            parent that monitoring studies would be needed to
                 1972 through the Convention on the Prevention of                              assess the effectiveness of actions in reducing the
                 Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other                               overall amount of marine debris as well as certain
                 Matter (commonly called the London Dumping Con-                               types of debris of particular concern, such as plastics
                 vention). Similarly, at-sea disposal of garbage                               generally, medical wastes, and fishing gear (MMC
                 generated during the routine operation of ships                               1987). To address marine pollution monitoring
                 (e.g., garbage not deliberately carried to sea for the                        needs generally, the Intergovernmental Oceano-
                 purpose of disposal) was addressed through a 1978                             graphic Commission (IOC), part of UNESCO,
                 Protocol to the 1973 International Convention for                             initiated a program for the Global Investigation of
                 the Prevention of Pollution by Ships (commonly                                Pollution in the Marine Environment (GIPME) in
                 called the MARPOL Convention). Specifically, the                              1976 (Andersen et al. 1986). The GIPME program is
                 1978 Protocol to the MARPOL Convention added                                  guided by a comprehensive plan consisting of four
                 five Annexes, each dealing with a different form of                           stages (Kullenberg 1986): a mass balance determina-
                 pollution from ships. Of these, Annex V established                           tion (including baseline measurements); a
                 regulations on discharging ship-generated garbage,                            contamination assessment (including an evaluation
                 including a prohibition of discharging all plastics at                        of the distribution, movement, and trends in levels of
                 sea..                                                                         pollutants in the marine environment); a pollution
                    National efforts to implement programs consistent                          assessment (involving an evaluation of a pollutant's
                 with these conventions may go beyond the specific                             effecton marine life); and regulatory action.
                 measures required by the international regimes. For                             To provide direction for its GIPME program, the
                 example, in the United States, substantial education                          IOC established a Working Group to oversee interna-
                 efforts have been mounted through the Marine En-                              tional efforts. Among other things, the GIPME
                 tanglement Research Program of the National                                   Working Group 1) develops manuals on procedures
                 Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These programs                               for collecting, recording, and archiving data on spe-
                 are directed toward mariners, beach users, and other                          cific marine pollutants; 2) supports training exercises







            4      NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual

            in the use of those procedures; and 3) conducts in-           rectly assess debris in the open ocean, usually on ves-
            ter-calibration exercises to ensure that data collected       sels of opportunity, have increased (e.g., Gregory et
            by one country or group can be statistically compa-           al. 1984; Dahlberg and Day 1985; Jones and Ferrero
            rable with those collected by others. As an example           1985; Yoshida and Baba 1985, a and b; Ignell and
            of its efforts, the Working Group adopted a manual            Dahlberg 1986; Mio and Takebama 1988; Yagi and
            describing a standard methodology for monitoring              Nomura 1988; Nasu and Hiramatsu 1990). In most
            tar balls and dissolved oil in seawater and on beaches        cases, the individual monitoring studies have had dif-
            (IOC 1984) and subsequently assisted efforts to test          ferent ob ectives and different sampling designs, thus
            procedures in the manual in the-Caribbean Sea area            making comparisons and broad assessments question-
            (Corredor et al. 1987). The success of this approach          able (Ribic and Bledsoe 1986). A case illustrating
            is evident from publications that have successfully           problems with non-standardized methodology is that
            documented and described the extent of tar pollu-             of assessing roadside litter in the U.S.; areas were not
            tion in the Caribbean (Atwood et al. 1987, a through          comparable because different survey techniques were
            c).                                                           used (Marquez and Zandi 1985).
              Prior to 1986, the GIPME Working Group had not                Therefore, the purpose of this manual is to review
            addressed monitoring needs for marine debris.                 the sampling designs used to measure marine debris
            Therefore, at its Sixth Session in Paris, France, on 25       and to put them into a framework useful to others in
            September-1 October 1986, it reviewed debris-re-              planning and executing surveys to assess the types,
            lated information and agreed that a procedures                amount, distribution, and movement of marine de-
            manual for monitoring debris on beaches and at sea            bris in open water and on beaches. By doing so, we
            warranted consideration. To assist in developing the          hope that scientists, resource managers, and others
            manual and to help in encouraging and guiding ma-             who can collect useful data will be encouraged to do
            rine debris monitoring efforts in the U.S., the Marine        so in a manner that will be useful and help contrib-
            Mammal Commission recommended to the NMFS                     ute to a broader understanding of the status and
            that a manual be developed as part of the Marine              trends of marine debris pollution.
            Entanglement Research Program to encourage OP7                  This manual is divided into chapters according to
            portunistic monitoring efforts in the U.S. and that           type and location of debris survey. Chapter 2 deals
            this manual be provided to the GIPME Working                  with shipboard sighting surveys for larger debris in
            Group for consideration in its series of pollution            open water, Chapter 3 addresses shipboard surface
            manuals (MMC 1987).                                           sampling for smaller debris in open water, Chapter 4
              Following some preliminary work on the manual,              reviews beach surveys, Chapter 5 addresses benthic
            the matter was examined further at the Second Inter-          surveys for larger debris in open water, and Chapter
            national Conference on Marine Debris held in                  6 deals with the experimental approach of aerial sur-
            Honolulu, Hawaii, on 2-7 April 1989, at which time a          veys. Even though the manual is divided into separate
            Conference Working Group to Assess the Amount                 chapters, investigators may use two or more survey
            and Types of Marine Debris (hereafter referred to as          methodologies from the separate chapters to esti-
            the Assessment Working Group) was formed (Ribic               mate the magnitude of the marine debris problem in
            1990). Its participants agreed that work on a proce-          a particular area. The rest of Chapter I discusses ter-
            dures manual should proceed as a matter of high               minology and categories of marine debris, the
            priority and that the work should focus on describing         importance of defining objectives prior to starting a
            study methodologies to meet the first two stages of           survey, and general monitoring guidelines. A glossary
            the above-mentioned GIPME program plan for pollu-             is provided at the end of the manual.
            tion monitoring (i.e., baseline studies and
            contaminant assessment) (Ribic 1990).
              In this regard, the Assessment Working Group                Definition and Categories of
            noted that two basic approaches have been used to             Marine Debris
            assess marine debris: open-water surveys (including
            both visual sighting surveys, surface trawls, and             As note previously, the marine debris problem was
            benthic trawls); and beach surveys. Initially, studies        initially characterized as a marine litter problem. The
            most often involved beach surveys (e.g., Gregory              National Academy of Sciences (1975) defined marine
            1977; 1978, a and b, 1987; Dixon and Dixon 1980,              litter as solid materials of human origiri that are dis-
            1981b, 1983; Merrell 1984, 1985; Henderson and                carded at sea or reach the sea through waterways or
            Pillos 1985), which Dixon and Dixon (1981a) sug-              domestic and industrial outfalls. While the definition
            gested were the most cost-effective monitoring                is broad and remains useful, we prefer the term "ma-
            strategy for debris. However, recent attempts to di-          rine debris" because it does not suggest impacts are







                                                                                                          CHAPTER 1: Methodology         5
              primarily aesthetic. The Academy's definition prop-                  medium       debris @!2.5 cm and 5;10 cm, e.g.,
              erly distinguished between sources of debris that                                 styrofoam cups, tampon applicators
              originated at sea and those that originated on land.                 large        debris >10 cm and !@l in, e.g.,
              In this manual, the term "vessel-source" debris will                              bleach bottles, gillnet floats
              refer to material of human origin discarded in open
              water. MARPOL Annex V established regulations gov-                   verylarge    debris >1 in, e.g., derelict fishing
              erning the discharge of garbage during the normal                                 net
              operations of ships, including a prohibition of at-sea           The boundary of 2.5 cm can be justifie         .d because
              disposal of any plastics (Augerot 1988). An example              MARPOL Annex V regulations        Istate that material re-
              of vessel-source debris is fishing-related debris such           leased from ships will be ground to <2.5 cm. The
              as trawl net fra  Fments. "Landbased" debris, in this            distinction among the other categ     .ories, while more
              manual, will refer to material of human origin that              arbitrary, is based on sizes of the major debris items
              reaches the sea through waterways or domestic and                often found on beaches.
              industrial outfalls. Included in "landbased" debris is             There are many categories used for medium to
              litter left by beach users, material lost from coastal           very large debris by studies done in op-en water
              landfill sites, and items such as tampon applicators             (Table 2). Researchers usually identified individual
              discharged through sewage outfalls. This distinction             items to produce @an exhaustive list and then grouped
              is important because MARPOL Annex V addresses                    the debris into major categories. The general group-
              the problem of vessel-source debris only, whereas the            ings used have been similar. The debris items are
              Clean Water Act addresses landbased debris (e.g.,                usually organized -according to what the items are
              ocean dumping of landbased garbage and combined                  made from (e.g., paper, rubber, plastic, wood, glass,
              sewer overflow systems) (U.S. EPA 1990b). Any ma-                metal), the manufacturer's intended use (e.g., fish-
              rine debris sampling scheme, especially surveys done             ing gear, ropes, bottles), or a combination of the two.
              on land, must recognize that sampled material may                The major categories have typically been fishing gear,
              originate from both sources.                                     plastic, styrofoam, glass, wood, metal, paper, and mis-
                Marine debris may be classified based on size. This            cellaneous. Fishing gear was usually subdivided into
              type of distinction is important because size will influ-        nets and other gear (including plastic floats). Some-
              ence the way debris is dispersed and deposited, the              times plastic and styrofoam were put into one
              wildlife impacts that may occur, and what type of sur-           category. Wood was mostly divided into natural (e.g.,
              vey approaches may be practical. The Assessment                  logs) and man-made (e.g., boxes). In some studies,
              Working Group (Ribic 1990) proposed the following                cloth, cardboard, and rubber were separated into ma-
              debris categorization by size:                                   jor categories. Most of the open-water studies did not
                                                                               state that particular debris items were of interest,
                          mega-debris-debris >2-3 cm                           though some of the categories used tended to reflect
                          macro-debris-5 mm to 2-3 cm                          that interest (e.g., the emphasis on fishing gear in
                          meso-debris-<5 min                                   the studies of Mio and Takehama 1988 and Nasu and
                          micro-debris-powdered                                Hiramatsu 1990; [Table 2]). Beach debris surveys
                                                                               tended to use categories that reflected specific study
                "Macro-debris," "megalitter" (McCoy 1988; Gre-                 objectives (Table 3). For example, because Merrell
              gory 1990), and "large plastic" (Day and Shaw 1987)              (1985) emphasized entangling debris, his list reflects
              are terms used to describe marine debris visible to              that interest (Table 3). Willoughby (1986) empha-
              the eye or with binoculars during the course of vessel           sized man-made materials with long degradation
              sighting surveys and beach surveys. The lower size               times; thus, his list did not include paper or card-
              limit of this type of debris varied, ranging from <0.5           board (Table 3). One of the most general lists is that
              cm (McCoy 1988) to 1.5 cm (Morris 1980a), and up                 used by the Center for Marine Conservation (CMC)
              to 2.5 cm in length (Dahlberg and Day 1985; Day and              (formerly the Center for Environmental Education),
              Shaw 1987). McCoy (1988) used 7 X 50 binoculars to               with 59 individual items (CEE 1988 [Table 31; form
              make observations on a stationary ship in calm seas.             can be found in Appendix 4). The CMC's list paral-
              Alternately, Day and Shaw (1987) used IOX binocu-                lels the major categories used in the open-water
              lars on a moving ship in variable seas. In this manual,          studies with one exception: fishing gear is put into
              the following size categories for debris are used.               the plastic category. Classifying fishing gear can be
                                                                               problematical because the category is one of func-
                  small         debris <2.5 cm (not visible by eye             tion rather than material from which the object is
                                in water), e.g., polystyrene pel-              made. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
                                lets, fragmented plastic                       (1990b) categorized fishing gear by material, so net-







                6         NOAA Technical Report NMIFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual



                                                                                          Table 2
                              Debris categories used by open-water sighting surveys for medium to very large debris (pieces >2.5 cm).

                    Reference                                 Categories                                              Comments

                    Venrick et a]. (19731                     plastic bottles                                         List of items found; categories not
                                                              plastic fragments                                       set up in advance
                                                              glass fishing floats
                                                              glass bottles
                                                              rope
                                                              balloon
                                                              finished wood
                                                              shoebrush
                                                              rubbersandal
                                                              paper items
                                                              coffee can


                    Morris (1980a)                            plastic bags                                            List of items found; categories set up in
                                                              cups                                                    advance
                                                              sheets
                                                              packing material
                                                              bottles
                                                              fragments
                                                              timber
                                                              rubber
                                                              nylon rope
                                                              feathers
                                                              glass bottles
                                                              paper items

                    Dixon (T.J.) and Dixon (1983)             man-made wood items
                                                              paper
                                                              cardboard
                                                              nylon rope
                                                              netting
                                                              plastics and styrofoam
                                                              metal
                                                              glass

                    Dahlberg and Day (1985)                   plastic                                                 48 individual items listed
                                                              styrofoam
                                                              metal
                                                              glass
                                                              paper
                                                              cloth
                                                              wood


                    Mio and Takehama (1988)                   net gear
                                                              plastic bands
                                                              other fishing gear
                                                              styrofoam
                                                              other plastic articles
                                                              pieces of wood/drifting logs
                                                              seaweed
                                                              other



                    Yagi and Nomura (1988)                    styrofoam
                                                              buoys
                                                              plastic sheets/bags
                                                              fishing net fragments
                                                              rope
                                                              wood
                                                              glass
                                                              metal
                                                              other







                                                                                                                                      CHAPTER 1: Methodolqy                   7


                                                                                   Table 2 (continued)

                    Reference                                 Categories                                              Comments

                    McCoy (1988)                              plastic
                                                              wood
                                                              other (paper, cloth, or unidentified)

                    Nasu and Hiramatsu (1990)                 artificial objects:
                                                                fishing gear
                                                                     net
                                                                     fishing gear other than nets
                                                                other than fishing gear
                                                                     pieces of wood
                                                                     petrochemical products
                                                                     styrofoam
                                                                     glass and metal products

                                                              natural objects:
                                                                seaweed
                                                                logs


                                                              other:
                                                                unknown


                    Day et a]. (1990a)                        glass
                                                              metal
                                                              paper/fiber
                                                              rubber
                                                              wood
                                                              plastic





                 ting is found under plastic while buoys are found un-                              categories is not possible owing to specific study ob-
                 der the polystyrene category. The National Park                                    jectives and debris unique to the particular area. An
                 Service (Cole et al. 1990) used the category "Plastic                              example of this was the expansion of the CMC form
                 Fishing Gear," which is a combined material and                                    from 59 to 200 items by the harbor studies program
                 function category.                                                                 (U.S. EPA 1990a).
                    Most categories are self-explanatory and require                                   For small debris, all the studies in Table 4 occurred
                 no specific knowledge for use (e.g., rope, styrofoam                               in open water and used similar categories. The items
                 food containers); however, some others such as buoy                                identified by the Assessment Working Group (Ribic
                 bags (Merrell 1985) and crustacean pot floats (Cole                                1990) as being most important to record are re-
                 et al. 1990) may require more definition. Few studies                              flected in the studies in Table 4.
                 conclusively define each debris category. The most                                    Primary categories by material can be developed
                 detailed list of definitions was found in Appendix B                               similar to medium-size and larger debris categories.
                 of Cole et al. (1990), where over 50 debris categories                             For small debris, color and size may become impor-
                 were listed; this appendix was used to define debris                               tant in determining the likelihood that different
                 categories in the glossary of this manual.                                         species may detect and ingest debris. Additional sub-
                    For medium and large debris categories, we recom-                               categories based on size and color would be useful
                 mend that researchers organize lists of items first by                             for small debris. Size categories could be based on
                 material type (i.e., plastic including foamed plastics                             the most common size for pellets. Because most pel-
                 [styrofoam], glass, metal, rubber, fiber [cloth], wood,                            let sizes fall between 1 mm and 6 mm (Carpenter and
                 paper) and then, under these primary categories, de-                               Smith 1972; Carpenter et al. 1972; Gregory 1977,
                 velop secondary categories according to function or                                1978a, 1983, 1990), three categories-<I mm, 1-6
                 manufactured product (e.g., fishing gear, bottles,                                 mm, and >6 mm-can be used. Color categories
                 medical use). All individual items would be listed un-                             could be based on Day et al. (1985, 1990b), who used
                 der one of these primary or secondary categories, or                               11 colors (transparent, red/pink, blue, yellow, white,
                 both. We recognize that complete standardization of                                tan, green, brown, black/gray, orange, miscellaneous).







                  8         NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual



                                                                                             Table 3
                                        Debris categories used by beach surveys for medium to very large debris (pieces >2.5 cm).

                      Reference                                Categories                                               Comments

                      Dixon and Cooke (1977)                   plastic                                                  Counting containers; 21 individual items
                                                               glass                                                    listed
                                                               metal

                                                               paper


                      Merrell (1985)                           trawl web
                                                               straps-open
                                                               straps-closed
                                                               trawl floats
                                                               synthetic line
                                                               bait containers
                                                               gillnet floats
                                                               bottles
                                                               caps and lids
                                                               fragments-hard
                                                               fragments-soft
                                                               buoy bags
                                                               six-pack yokes
                                                               other


                      Willoughby (1986)                        plastic bags                                             Only man-made materials with long
                                                               footwear                                                 degradation times counted
                                                               styrofoam
                                                               bottles
                                                               tins
                                                               ropes and netting
                                                               lamp bulbs

                      Vauk and Schrey (1987)                   plastic                                                  Individual items enumerated; then put into
                                                               paper                                                    categories
                                                               metal
                                                               glass
                                                               fishing gear
                                                               clothing
                                                               foodstuff
                                                               wood


                      Center for Environmental                 plastic                                                  59 subcategories
                      Education (1988)                         glass
                                                               styrofoam
                                                               metal

                                                               paper
                                                               man-made wood
                                                               rubber


                      Cole et al. (1990)                       plastic fishing gear                                     51 items listed
                                                               plastic packaging material
                                                               personal effects
                                                               miscellaneous plastics




                  General Monitoring Guidelines                                                       line studies for marine debris are generally car-
                                                                                                      ried out over large geographical areas with low sam-
                  The Assessment Working Group (Ribic 1990) divided                                   pling frequency. Assessment studies, however, were
                  marine debris studies into baseline and assessment                                  considered to be more focused in their objectives.
                  categories. By definition, baseline studies were de-                                Two examples of assessment studies are measuring
                  signed to determine the characteristics of the debris                               density of debris in certain areas and measuring
                  problem (e.g., what type of material is found). Base-                               changes over time (i.e., trend monitoring). Assess-







                                                                                                                                    CHAPTER 1: Mediodology                 9



                                                                                           Table 4
                                         Debris categories used by open-water sampling studies for small debris (pieces <2.5 cm).

                    Reference                         Categories                                                            Comments

                    Colton et al.                     white opaque polystyrene spherules
                    (1974)                            translucent to clear polystyrene spherules containing
                                                        gaseous voids
                                                      opaque to translucent polyethylene cylinders or discs
                                                      styrofoam
                                                      sheets of thin, flexible, wrapping material
                                                      pieces of plastic

                    Day et aL (1985)                  fragments                                                             10 color categories used
                                                      monofilament line fragments
                                                      pellets
                                                      polypropylene line fragments
                                                      styrofoam
                                                      miscellaneous/unidentified


                    Ryan (1988b)                      industrial pellets                                                    9 color categories used (color when
                                                      pieces of manufactured items                                          wet); 3 categories of wear used
                                                      fibers
                                                      styrofoam/other foamed plastics

                    Day et al. (1990b)                pellets                                                               I I color categories used
                                                      fragments
                                                      styrofoam
                                                      polypropylene line fragments
                                                      miscellaneous line/threads






                 ment studies tend to be more limited in geographical                               3   Collect information on the geographic areas
                 area and have more intense sampling efforts. This                                      of interest to develop the sampling plan (e.g.,
                 split in the types of studies reflects the ideas of                                    physical features, weather patterns, historical
                 Barnard et al. (1985), who divided monitoring stud-                                    information).
                 ies into two types: descriptive monitoring and                                     4   Define the field measurement to be made.
                 location-specific monitoring. Other researchers (Gil-                              5   Examine data from previous studies or conduct
                 bert 1987) do not distinguish between the two types                                    pilot studies to approximate the likely variability
                 of studies and refer to the baseline and assessment                                    in the field measurements.
                 studies collectively as monitoring studies in contrast                             6   Develop a quality assurance program plan to en-
                 to research studies (e.g., research studies to deter-                                  sure that the data collected will be of high
                 mine the transport of pollutants through the                                           quality, verifiable, and defensible.
                 environment). In this manual, we use the framework                                 7   Develop field sampling designs and measurement
                 in Table 5, which presents the survey types relevant                                   procedures that will yield representative data
                 to marine debris surveys. In terms of the base-                                        from the defined population, along with a speci-
                 line and assessment study definitions made by                                          fied variance or confidence limit. If necessary,
                 the Assessment Working Group (Ribic 1990), surveys                                     make decisions on identifying the source of de-
                 with objectives 1-4 (Table 5) are assessment                                           bris (vessel-source versus landbased).
                 studies, whereas studies with objective 5 (Table 5)                                8   Determine the statistical analyses to be used.
                 are baseline.                                                                      9   Conduct the study according to the written pro-
                    Whether or not the studies are baseline or assess-                                  tocol.
                 ment, good planning is essential to collect useful                                10   Analyze the data.
                 information. Advice in this manual is organized by                                11   Evaluate the study (e.g., were the objectives
                 the planning guidelines of Gilbert (1987):                                             met? Were the collected data adequate to meet
                   I State the objectives clearly.                                                      the stated objectives? Should the design be
                  2 Define the population of interest.                                                  modified?).







               10        NOAA Technical Report NMB.. 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual



                                                                                    Table 5
                                              Marine debris study objectives adapted from Lettenmaier et al. (1982).

                   Objective                            Description

                   (1) Surveillance                     Detect impact of known pollution source or detection of point source pollution (e.g., spills).
                                                        Need frequent sampling, possibly continuous monitoring.

                                                        Example:
                                                             Cargo spill (Dixon and Dixon 1981b)
                                                             Polystyrene spherules (Kartar et al. 1973, 1976)

                   (2) Model parameterization           Provide data on time and space scales to allow identification of input decay rates; linked to
                                                        prediction. Sampling is frequent and intense in a small area for a short time period.

                                                        Example:
                                                             Population dynamics of marine debris (Gerrodette 1985)

                   (3) Cause-effect                     Identify functions relating input and output; assess presentconditions. Sampling is frequent and
                                                        intense in a small area for a short time period.

                                                        Example:
                                                             Turnover rates for debris on beaches (Dixon and Cooke 1977; Johnson 1988, 1990a)

                   (4) Trend detection                  Analyze time series for evidence of changes in a statistical sense. Long sequences of observations
                                                        at frequencies on the order of weekly or monthly at stations scattered throughout a large area.

                                                        Example:
                                                             Assessment of changes of trawl web over time (Ribic andjohnson 1990)
                                                             Assessment of changes in total debris over time (Ribic 1991)
                                                             Assessment of changes in total plastic over time (Johnson 1990a)

                   (5) Baseline                         For little or no pre-existing data; establish the level of the problem. Low sampling frequencies.
                                                        Spatial density depends on problem (local problem will result irl more concentrated stations;
                                                        problems covering a large area can result in dispersed stations).

                                                        Example:
                                                             Nationwide beach surveys (O'Hara 1989, 1990)




                   Clearly defining and stating the objectives cannot                      Texas beaches in the fall or net fragments in the
               be overemphasized. The objectives can be as simple                          North Pacific during the fishing season. It may be
               as determining the kinds of debris occurring on a                           that only certain areas are available for study. For
               particular beach to as complex as determining a de-                         example, only beaches with good public access or
               crease in the amount of entangling debris seen on                           ocean areas visited regularly by vessels of opportunity
               Alaska beaches as a consequence of NLAPPOL Annex                            may be available for study. Then the population of
               V. Explicitly stated objectives guide the development                       interest (e.g., debris on all beaches) is not available,
               of the sampling design from defining the population                         and only a subset (e.g., debris on public beaches) is
               of interest to what data are collected and how they                         available. Given such restrictions, the target popula-
               are analyzed. Stating objectives also sets the scope of                     tion (population of interest minus the restricted
               the study and data analyses, which is important given                       areas) may not be truly representative of the larger
               that no single sampling design can answer all ques-                         population of interest, unless certain assumptions
               tions of interest, as is evident from Table 5.                              can be made and tested (e.g., debris composition on
                   The population of interest in marine debris studies                     private beaches is not different from that on public
               is often associated with a geographical area. Ex-                           beaches). Deciding on the target population is im-
               amples of populations of interest include net                               portant because that population will be used to
               fragments in the North Pacific Ocean, domestic waste                        define the sampling frame from which representative
               in the North Sea and tar in the Caribbean. Medium-                          units for measurement are chosen. A "representative
               or larger-sized debris on Texas beaches can also be a                       unit" is a unit selected from the sampling frame in
               population of interest. Populations of interest can                         such a way that it, in combination with the other rep-
               have a temporal component, such as large debris on                          resentative units, will give an accurate picture of the







                                                                                                         CHAPTER I., Methodology       I I
             phenomenon being studied (Gilbert 1987). Another                 researchers to help design their surveys. In addition,
             word for representative unit is "sampling unit" (the             if many people are involved in a study that is con-
             term used in this manual). Typical sampling units for            ducted over a long time period, the quality assurance
             marine debris studies are beaches or transects. on               program plan provides a unified set of directions to
             beaches, areas of ocean scanned, area swept by sur-              follow. Quality assurance program plans address mea-
             face sampler, and area swept by demersal trawl.                  sures that will describe data quality. They should
               Information on the physical environment, weather               contain a training element such that the accuracy
             patterns, and site history may be useful in planning             of data collected by volunteers can be assured. On
             the sampling design. For example, wind direction                   a more personal       level, the plan should incor-
             plays a large part in the deposition of debris on                porate procedures       that maintain a safe working
             beaches in the United Kingdom (Dixon and Dixon                   environment.
             1981a). Therefore, in this situation, information re-               Developing field     sampling designs and measure-
             garding offshore and onshore winds is important for              ment procedures         that give representative data
             determining sampling times. For open-water studies,              requires a statistical  assessment. Sample size require-
             information on curr     -ents or areas where debris are          ments are determined, a procedure for choosing
             concentrated can be used to decide where the sam-                sampling units is developed, and precision and statis-
             pling should be concentrated (i.e., stratification               tical power are. discussed. Developing a sampling
             variables). In addition, surface drift experiments may           design is the most problematical task for a study.
             be used to identify sampling conditions in relation to           There may be many sampling designs to choose
             oceanographic conditions (e.g., onshore currents).               from, but each design is likely to have different ef-
             This aspect is considered further in the individual              fects on results and require different effort for the
             chapters.                                                        survey. Field sampling designs will be addressed in
               Defining the field measurements is important and               the individual chapters.
             is discussed in more detail in the individual chapters.             Certain statistical analyses are appropriate for most
             Issues that must be resolved    'are defining what will be       studies of marine debris. These are called descriptive
             measured, what the sampling unit is, how the mea-                statistics (e.g., means, variances, plots of data) and
             surements will be taken on the sampling unit, and                exploratory data analyses (e.g., box plots). All are
             what field methodology will be used. These are criti-            available in a wide variety of computer packages. The
             cal elements of geographically-based surveys such as             more difficult decisions are made when there are sta-
             those for marine debris. The sampling unit may be a              tistical hypotheses to be tested. How to test for
             fixed area of ocean with the measurement being                   changes in trend over time or changes in mean level
             counts of all items >2.5 cm. The field methodology               over time are questions that can be addressed in a
             may be a strip transect. All of these issues should be           variety of ways. In general, there are parametric and
             resolved before the start of the field work and noted            nonparametric statistical methods. Both approaches
             in the quality assurance program plan discussed                  have strengths and weaknesses. The scope of this
             below.                                                           manual precludes discussion of these in detail. Stan-
               Pilot studies play a critical role in survey design,           dard statistical texts (e.g., Conover 1980; Sokal and
             Particularly for large-scale or long-term surveys (or            Rohlf 1981) should be consulted; Gilbert (1987) pre-
             both). Pilot studies play a key role in training for             sents a discussion on detecting changes in trend.
             field measurement techniques, preliminary assess-                   Evaluating the study design is critical. Sometimes
             ment of debris sources (which may change the                     changes in design are made owing to problems in the
             design), and assessment of debris variability in the             field as they arise. In addition, as more is learned
             sampling units over the geographical area of interest.           about the problem of interest, objectives and study
             Pilot studies also are invaluable for determining cost           designs change. For example, the beach surveys in
             and effort to complete the survey. Then, study objec-            Alaska started by Merrell (1985) have changed from
             tives can be modified or new objectives stated                   a general survey of trawl webbing on beaches to focus
             because of sampling constraints found during the                 on detectable changes that may be due to MARPOL
             pilot study (e.g., available resources, type of equip-           Annex V. The effect of this particular change is dis-
             ment on hand).                                                   cussed in more detail in Chapter 4.
               Quality assurance program plans have not been de-                 Individual chapters follow the I I guidelines of Gil-
             scribed for many published surveys, and we are                   bert (1987) with an emphasis on guidelines 1, 2, 4,
             uncertain whether many studies have had one.                     and 7. The other guidelines are discussed when ap-
             Quality assurance activities help to make -studies re-           propriate. In all cases, investigators are encouraged
             peatable. Detailed descriptions of what was done                 to discuss design and data analysis procedures with a
             (e.g., standardized procedures) can be used by other             statistician.






                                                                    Oiapter 2

                                                      Shipboard Sighting Surveys
                                                          for Large Debris Items


              General Description                                               Population of Interest

              This chapter discusses open-water sighting surveys                In planned studies, debris in specific oceanic areas
              whereby all floating debris are identified and                    comprises the population of interest, which must be
              counted from an elevated platform on a moving ship.               defined by the researcher. For example, fur seal re-
              Transect Width may vary from .100 m to the visual                 searchers were interested in the amount of floating
              horizon depending on the type of debris being stud-               net debris around the Pribilof Islands, the breeding
              ied. Surveys are usually conducted from the                       rookeries for northern fur seals. Therefore, floating
              glare-free side of the ship, and objects are sighted              net debris in a specific area around the islands dur-
              visually either unaided or with binoculars.                       ing the fur seal breeding season was defined as the
                Sighting surveys collect information on the distri-             population of interest, and surveys were conducted
              bution and amounts of floating, medium to very                    in that area (Yoshida and Baba 1985b; Baba et al.
              large debris in areas of the open water during spe-               1988; 1990). Alternatively, the population of interest
              cific time periods. Baseline surveys have been done               can be as large as all the debris in the North Pacific
              in the North Pacific Ocean using vessels of opportu-              Ocean (Mio and Takehama 1988; Mio et al. 1990;
              nity (Dahlberg and Day 1985; Ignell 1985; Jones and               Nasu and Hiramatsu 1990). Defining the population
              Ferrero 1985; Ignell and Dahlberg 1986; Mio and                   of interest is determined by the objectives of the
              Takeharna 1988; Day et al. 1990a; Mio et al. 1990;                study.
              Nasu and Hiramatsu 1990; Shaw 1990). Vessels of op-                 Restrictions to the population of interest are likely
              portunity also have been used to survey areas of the              when surveys rely on vessels of opportunity. In such
              North Sea (Dixon (T.J.) and Dixon 1983) and the                   cases, areas of the ocean are surveyed not because of
              Mediterranean Sea (Morris 1980a). Dedicated vessels               any particular sampling plan but because that is the
              have been used in assessment studies to detect tem-               ship's destination. This restriction often is not stated
              poral trends in the North Pacific along 137'E                     by authors, who may generalize the debris in the
              longitude between 0' and WN latitude (Yagi and                    sampled area to an entire oceanic area without any
              Nomura 1988). Other studies have resurveyed areas                 justification for doing so. We basically consider it in-
              to look for temporal changes; for example, Day and                appropriate to generalize results from vessels of
              Shaw (1987) surveyed the Gulf of Alaska along 155'                opportunity studies.
              longitude in 1984 and 1985.

                                                                                Field Measurement
              Objectives and Purpose
                                                                                The most common variables of interest for open-
              Typical objectives for open-water sighting surveys are            water sighting surveys are density (number/kml) and
              as follows:                                                       types of medium to very large debris.
                to identify types of floating marine debris;
                to estimate densities of floating marine debris;                Description
                to identify areas of low or high concentrations of
                floating marine debris relative to either oceano-               Observer(s) on a moving ship stand on the flying
                graphic features (e.g., currents, convergence                   bridge or other elevated section. Observer heights
                zones) or man-made structures (e.g., offshore oil               above the water line and speed of ship will vary ac-
                platforms);                                                     cording to- the type of ship. Using the glare-free side
                to relate floating debris to entanglement or other              of the ship for observation,   .observer(s) visually scan
                effects on animals; and                                         for objects floating on the ocean as the ship moves
                to detect temporal and spatial chang       es in the o  Ic-     through the area. Binoculars are generally not used
                currence of marine debris.


                                                                                                                                            13







             14       NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual

             to sight objects; instead, they are used only to con-               seen within that strip and any objects seen outside
             firm the identity or to help estimate sizes of objects.             the specified distance are not counted (e.g., object 1
             The number of observers on a survey varies (1-10).                  in Figure 1 is counted; object 2 is not). Common
             The Assessment Working Group (Ribic 1990) recom-                    strip widths are 50 m (Day and Shaw 1987; Day et al.
             mended that a minimum of two observers be em-                       1990a) and 100 m (Dixon (T. R.) and Dixon 1983).
             plu)yed in any survey. Survey transects must be de-                 The actual strip width used will depend on the study
             fined in terms of width and length: the survey width                objectives. Other researchers have counted all debris
             (i.e., the maximum distance from the ship's side in                 seen without regard to a specified strip width and
             which debris will be censused) may vary, in part, de-               then have truncated.the data at certain distances for
             pending on the number of observers; length of                       analysis (e.g., 50 m, Dahlberg and Day 1985; 10 m,
             transect is defined as the straight-line distance cov-              Mio and Takehama 1988). Appendix 2A contains a
             ered by the ship during an observation period.                      protocol by the Tidy Britain Group for using strip
             Observation periods may be defined in terms of time                 transects to estimate debris density.
             periods of constant sighting conditions, vessel speed,              Line Transect-All objects are counted regardless of
             and direction. Length is then calculated by recording               the distance from ship, and the perpendicular dis-
             beginning and ending location (latitude/longitude)                  tance from the object to the ship is measured
             or by calculating the distance traveled using the                   (Fig. 2). Two other variables-the distance of the ob-
             ship's speed at the start of the transect, or both (the             ject to the ship at the time of first sighting and the
             latter method assumes the ship is moving at a con-                  angle of observation (Fig. 2)-can be measured and
             stant speed). If vessel's speed or course changes, then             converted to a perpendicular distance. While these
             new coordinates, speed, and time must be recorded.                  latter two variables have been recorded most fre-
                                                                                 quently (Dahlberg and Day 19,85; Mio and Takehama
                                                                                 1988; Nasu and Hiramatsu 1990), perpendicular dis-
             Options                                                             tance (Mio et al. 1990) is preferred (Burnham et al.
                                                                                 1980). When the latter two variables are measured,
             Strip Transect-In a strip transect, only objects                    the measurement errors inherent in both variables
             within a specified distance from the side of the ship
             are counted (Fig. 1). All objects are assumed to be

                                                        00
                                                                                                                  P,




                                                                                                                        el
                                                                                                           P2
                                                                                                                         02
                                        W                                                               r2
                            900                                                            ................................
                                                       0
                                                       0                                                                    0
                                                       0                                                                    0
                                                       SHIP
                                                                                                                            0
                                                                                                                           SHIP
                                         Figure I
                     Schematic   diagram of a strip transect. W
                     specified strip width. The dark circle indi-                                            Figure 2
                                                                                                       @P,
















                     cates the observer, and the strip is between 0               Schematic diagram of a line transect. Pi = perpendicular
                     and 90'. Object 1 is inside the strip and is                 distance of object i to ship, ri = distance from object i to
                     recorded while Object 2 is outside the strip                 observer at time of sighting, and Oi = angle between
                     and is not recorded (even if observed).                      object i and observer at sighting.







                                                                        CHAPTER 2: Shipboard Sighting Surveysfor Large Debns IL-im        15

             result in errors in perpendicular distances that are               when observations should take place. For example,
             difficult to correct. When perpendicular distance is               Dixon (T.J.) and Dixon (1983) restricted observa-
             measured, errors can be dealt with by using distance               tions to sea states (based on a combination of wind,
             classes (Burnham and Anderson 1984). For example,                  waves, and swell height) of 3 or less, whereas Shaw
             instead of using all distances as recorded, distances              (1990) used se   'a states of 4 or less, and Day et al.
             can be grouped into distance classes (e.g., 0-5 m,                 (1990a) did not sample when high waves could have
             5-10 m). Errors made in estimating an object 6 m                   affected "sightability."
             from the ship, versus 7 m, are then unimportant be-                Characteristics of Marine Debris-Various authors
             cause the data are analyzed in terms of distance                   (Dahlberg and Day 1985; Jones and Ferrero 1985;
             classes rather than individual distances.                          Mio and Takehama 1988) have noted that color,
                It is beyond the scope of this manual to present a              size, shape, and buoyancy of objects affect their
             detailed discussion of the advantages and disadvan-                sightability. Currently, no data are available with
             tages of the line- versus strip-transect method. Both              which the problem can be evaluated. When using a
             have strengths and weaknesses (Burnham and Ander-                  strip. transect approach, trials could be undertaken
             son 1984). The strip transect method requires that all             with materials of known characteristics deliberately
             objects be seen in the strip of width w, but distance or           placed at different distances from a vessel or in vary-
             angle measurements are unnecessary. Bias in the                    ing weather conditions to determine sighting
             density estimate results from objects being missed                 probabilities.
             within the strip, from objects along the strip perim-              Vessel Variability@Ship's speed and observer's
             eter mistakenly being included or excluded from the                height above the water will affect marine debris
             ship, from observer differences (e.g., experience dif-             sightings (Mio and Takehama 1988). While the im-
             ferences, fatigue), from the physical setting (e.g.,               portance of these variables has been noted, no data
             weather, speed of travel), and from variability in the             are available to determine optimal height of ship
             objects (e.g., color, size, shape).                                speed for marine debris surveys. If all data are com-
                The line transect method requires four assump-                  bined into one set, the sighting differences due to
             tions: 1) objects on the line are detected with                    vessel variability add to the variability in the data.
             certainty; 2) objects do not move in response to the               Measurement Variability-Exact measurements are
             observer before detection; 3) perpendicular distance               critical for the data analysis stage (Burnham et al.
             data are accurate; and 4) detections are indepen-                  1980). Most studies have estimated angle and dis-
             dent. For sighting marine debris, the first and third              tance from the ship to the o@ject at first sighting with
             assumptions are the two most likely to be violated.                no indication that the accuracy of the data has been
             The first assumption can be handled by having one                  checked. If the perpendicular distances are discov-
             observer watch the center line. The third assumption               ered to be inaccurate, the analysis can still proceed
             will be difficult to fulfill given the problems of esti-           by putting the distances into distance classes
             mating distances at sea; however, training observers               (Burnham and Anderson 1984). Distances can be
             to estimate distances at sea would be an important                 measured with a range finder or binoculars with
             part of the quality assurance program plan. Biases                 reticles. Distance classes (e.g., 0-10 m, 10-20 m, etc.)
             due to observer differences, the physical setting, and             can be set up prior to the study and used instead of
             object variability are incorporated into the analysis of           measured distances. Accuracy of distance classes will
             the perpendicular distances.                                       still be important because the boundaries between
                Of the two methods, theoretical studies by Burn-                classes must be identified.
             ham et al. (1985) suggest that, in terms of increased
             efficiency and lower bias, the line transect method
             gives better density estimates than the strip transect             Data Collection
             method. If an observer at sea can accurately measure
             angles and distances or accurately use distance class-             Researchers should collect the following data.
             es, the line transect method is preferred (Ribic 1990).
                                                                                * date
                                                                                0 time at start of transect
             Variables to Consider                                              * duration of transect (time elapsed)
                                                                                e location (latitude/longitude) at start of transect
             Weather-Avoid making observations when condi-                      o distance traveled during transect:
             tions restrict visibility. For example, Yoshida and Baba               ship's speed at start of transect (the transect
             (1985b) made no observations when visibility fell be-                  should be stopped if the vessel changes speed)
             low 200 m. Sea state has also been used to determine                   location at end of transect (latitude/longitude)







              16      NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
              esighting condition-visibility, wind speed and direc-          number of transects made, effort, and area surveyed.
               tion, cloud cover, sea state, direction of sun relative       A transect is defined as the straight-line distance be-
               to ship's course                                              tween the starting and ending locations of the ship or
              *a list of all items sighted by classification (see Chap-      the straight-line distance traveled for the duration of
               ter 1), location at sighting, and distance/angle              the transect. based on the ship's speed at the start of
               measurements (if line transect)                               the transect. In both cases, the ship's course must not
              *comments                                                      change during the observation period.
               Note that the first five items in the above list are            Forms for collecting debris sighting data have not
              necessary whether or not debris is sighted on a                been standardized, and few researchers have pub-
              transect. This information is used to calculate the total      lished their data forms. Figure 3 is a suggested data


                      Observer Name(s)                                  Starting location - lat/long
                      Vessel Name                                       Ending location - lat/long

                      Date (Yr/Mo/Day)                                  Time: Start transect
                      Sea state (Beaufort)                              Time: End transect

                      Visibility                                        Ship's speed at start of transect

                      Weather                                           Wind. Speed

                                                                                Direction



                      Time       Classification        Object        Perpendicular        Size            Comments
                                (plastic, wood, etc.)                 Distance (m)
































                                                                       Figure 3
                                              Suggested data form for open-water mega-debris sightings.






                                                                        CffAPTER 2. Shipboard Sighting Surveysfor Lage Debns Items        17
              form,, and Appendix Figure B (this chapter) is an                 for room and board, the cost for a I-month cruise
              example of a data form used by the Marine Mammal                  will be less than $1,000 for two people for the use of
              Observer Program to collect marine debris informa-                a ship compared to $30,000 to $200,000+ when char-
              tion. Debris information is substituted for species               tering a vessel. The trade-offs are in the great
              information (L.L. Jones, NOAA, National Marine                    restriction of the population of interest and the
              Mammal Laboratory, Seattle, WA, pers. commun.                     availability of such cruises. Additional expense can be
              February 1991).                                                   saved if biologists or oceanographers (volunteers)
                                                                                make debris sightings between their primary research
              Material and Personnel                                            tasks. For volunteer-collected data, quality assurance
                                                                                of the collected data will be an important issue
              The basic equipment needed for sighting debris is a               that needs to be resolved before such a program is
              pair of binoculars (e.g., 8X40, 1OX50) to identify                implemented.
              sighted objects. Typical costs for high quality bi-                 Required personnel includes at least two ob-
              nocul .ars are $300-1,000 (1991 U.S. dollars). Perpen-            servers experienced or trained in sighting objects
              dicular distances can be measured with a. range                   floating at sea and who also have training or experi-
                                                                                ence in the use of equipment to measure distances
              finder or binoculars with reticles and compass                    and angles. Because experienced observers see more
              ($500-1,000). Clipboards, pencils, and data forms                 than inexperienced observers, an inexperienced ob-
              will be necessary to record the data (approximately               server should be paired, with an experienced
              $200). A tape recorder may be useful for document-                observer. Whenever possible, for different' cruises
              ing and verifying observations.                                   during the study, the same observers should. be in-
                The major cost of a dedicated debris survey at sea              volved in the field work to help control observer
              is the ship. Ship costs are related to vessel size, equip-        variability (Day and Shaw 1987; Dixon (T.R.) and
              ment, and trip duration. For example, a vessel about              Dixon 1983).
              38 in (125 ft) long for high seas travel and that fulfills
              the NOAA requirements for doing small cetacean
              sighting work will probably cost in excess of $6,600/             QualityAssuranceProgram
              day, not including fuel cost. Therefore, for a I-month
              cruise, the ship alone would cost approximately                   Unfortunately, publications describing results of
              $198,000 (excluding fuel costs). An observer's travel
              expenses and salary are additional. The salary of the             open-water sighting surveys have not described or ac-
              observer needs to be a minimum of $3,000/mo to                    knowledged a quality assurance plan. Some details of
                                                                                importance for ensuring quality data from open-wa-
              compete with other observer programs (L.L. Jones,
                                                                                ter sighting surveys are as follows:
              NOAA, National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Se-
              attle, WA, pem commun. February 1991). Other                      * What is the population of interest, and what is the
              expenses might be necessary, such as extra equip-                   population actually available for sampling (i.e., re-
              ment (e.g., a wrench and hook to retrieve nets).                    strictions to the sampling frame; Guideline 7,
              Thus, for two observers, the 338 in (125 ft) ship, and              Chapter 1)?
              travel expenses (e.g., $1,000 per observer), a                    & What is the justification for coricluding that the tar-
              I-month cruise could cost over $216,500. Larger                     get population represents the broader population
              vessels (e.g., NOAA research vessels like the Oceanog-              of interest?
              rapher and the Miller Freeman), are much more                     0 How is a transect defined (e.g.; strip or line
              expensive (for estimates, write Director, Pacific Ma-               transect, how wide, how long)? How is the transect
              rine Center, NOAA, 1801 Fairview, Seattle, WA                       selected for sampling?
              98102). Surveys near the coast will be able to use                9 How is the sighting survey to be carried out. (e.g.,
              smaller ships, which may rent for as low as $1,000/                 how many people, how is debris        sighted and veri-
              day (L.L. Jones, NOAA, National Marine Mammal                       fied [with or without binoculars], what side of the
              Laboratory, Seattle, WA, pers. commun. February                     ship will be used [one or both], how high above
              1991).                                                              the water will the observer be, what are the restric-
                Given the high cost of a dedicated research cruise,               tions on sighting conditions, how. fast will the vessel
              researchers usually use research vessels scheduled for              travel)?
              other purposes. This "vessel of opportunity" research               How experienced are the observers in sighting ob-
              considerably lowers the cost (to $8,000 in the preced-              jects at sea?
              ing example) because the researcher will only have to             e-Were the observers trained to estimate angles and
              pay for travel, room, and board. Assuming $10/day                   distances at sea? How were they trained?







             18       NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
               Were devices or procedures used to aid in making               guidelines can be stated. More published informa-
               and verifying these measurements?                              tion is available regarding open-water distribution of
               Of critical importance to the sighting survey is esti-         marine debrisin the North Pacific than in any other
             mating the   distances (and angles, if necessary) from           ocean body (Mio and Takehama 1988; Mio et al.
             the ship to  the debris object. Most ships have a com-           1990; Nasu and Hiramatsu 1990). There is probably
             pass on the flying bridge that can be used to measure            enough information available to establish survey
             angles. Distance or distance classes can be measured             lines for regular monitoring (as suggested by Nasu
             by visual estimation, or with either a range-finder              and Hiramatsu 1990). How one picks the areas or
             (which can be as simple as a set of calipers or a card-          survey lines depends on the objectives of the survey.
             board triangle) or binoculars with reticles. A                   If a survey of general debris trends over time is the
             range-finder or binoculars with reticles can only be             goal, transect lines in areas known to concentrate de-
             used when the horizon is clear. Poor visibility due to           bris may be desirable (e.g., northeast to northwest of
             fog or low clouds and sea state (i.e., the horizon is            the Hawaiian Islands [Nasu and Hiramatsu 1990]). If
             obscured by the swells and the ship's pitch is ex-               the goal is to monitor conditions in an area of special
             treme) will affect the use of these items. Appendix              interest (e.g., near the Pribilof Islands [Yoshida and
             Figure A (this chapter) contains an example of a                 Baba 1985b; Baba et al. 1988]), then transect lines
             range-finder to estimate the outer boundary of the               obviously should be located in that area regardless of
             strip and contains a figure explaining the use of the            possible surrounding concentration points.
             range-finder. Practical advice and further references              The number of surveys needed also depends on
             concerning the estimation of distances and the use of            the objectives. Ribic and Bledsoe (1986, 1990) pro-
             range-finders at sea can be found in Gould and                   duced some sample size estimates based on a specific
             Forsell (1989). Along with consultation with experi-             definition of a transect for estimating density of
             enced observers, this information should be used to              floating debris. The study did mot consider stratifica-
             prepare a detailed training session for observers to             tion because of insufficient information. Because
             ensure the quality of the collected distance measure-            previous information indicated that debris was sparse
             ments.                                                           in the open ocean, estimates of sample sizes needed
               In addition to carrying out the survey, the ap-                were large (and probably impractical on a large
             proach for data entry and analysis is outlined. For              scale) based on the nonparametric approach of
             example, who will check the data to ensure correct               Burnham et al. (1980).
             entry? What analysis techniques will be used and                   Given the constraints of open-water surveys done
                                                                              on vessels of opportunity, the typical sampling design
             why? Obviously,, all such details need not be put into           is a series of systematic transects made along the ves-
             a published paper; however, the quality assurance                sel track with the number of transects determined by
             program plan should be referenced with key features              the number of observers and sighting conditions.
             noted in publications to the extent possible, and de-            Even with a dedicated cruise, logistical constraints
             tails should be available to interested parties on               will usually preclude a completely randomized de-
             request. Appendix Figure A (this chapter) contains               sign. For large oceanic areas, a systematic survey
             detailed instructions used by the Tidy Britain Group             design would be the alternative in most cases, as seen
             to carry out strip transects.                                    in the design of many NOAA National Marine Fisher-
               As a practical matter, funding agencies should re-             ies Service surveys (Rice and Wolman 1982; Bakkala
             quire and review the quality assurance program plan.             and Wakabayashi 1985).
             If a government agency is funding the study, they
             may wish to codify the study protocols as Standard
             Operating Procedures (SOP), (e.g., see EPA SOP in                Analytical Procedures
             Appendix Figure B, chap. 3).
                                                                              Burnham et al. (1980) give detailed procedures for
                                                                              analyzing line transect data, including an available
             Field Sampling Designs                                           computer program named TRANSECT. Most re-
                                                                              searchers used strip transect estimates even when line
             The actual sampling design depends on the objec-                 transect information was collected (Dahlberg and
             tives of the project. Is the survey a baseline study or          Day 1985; Mio and Takehama 1988). For the sighting
             an assessment study? If it is an assessment study, is it         function model used in line transect estimation, both
             to develop model parameters or to detect changes in              Nasu and Hiramatsu (1990) and Mio et al. (1990)
             space or time (see Table 5 in Chapter 1)? Given the              used a hazard rate model that was developed for
             large areas of ocean to be considered, some general              whale sighting surveys.






                                                                            CHAPTER 2: Shipboard Sighting Surveysfor Large Debris Item          19

                                                     A
                 For a strip transect, density      (D) (number/kml)        is     Confidence intervals can be calculated (Burnham et
               estimated by                                                        al. 1980)  * Testing hypotheses regarding density esti-
                                       h =    n                                    mates between areas and between years can be done
                                            2Lw                                    with a variety of parametric and nonparametric statis-
                                                                                   tical methods. Avoid combining data sets from
               where          n = number of objects counted,                       different areas when observations from each area
                              L = total length of all the transects                were made in different years because area differences
                                    (km), and                                      will not be distinguishable from yearly differences.
                              w = 1/2 the width of the strip transect              Analysis of the data set depends on the objectives of
                                                                                   the study, and a statistician should be consulted,
                                    (km).
                 For a line transect, density b (number/kM2)          is esti-     Summary
               mated by
                                            A
                                           nf (0,0)                                *  Density of marine debris is the preferred field mea-
                                             2L                                       surement.
                                                                                   *  Strip and line transect methodologies are available
               where    A(0,0)      the estimated probability distribu-               for density estimation. More discussion is necessary
                                    tion function at zero distance                    before the preferred methodology can be chosen
                                                                A                     for marine debris surveys.
                                    (based on the function f (xO) fit to           e  At least two observers should be used.
                                    the perpendicular sighting dis-                9  Debris should be sighted by visual observation; bin-
                                    tances) (units are 1/km), n =                     oculars should be used to identify or verify item
                                    number of objects counted, L = to-                classification and to estimate distances.
                                    tal length of all the transects (km).          a  Cost considerations make dedicated surveys for
                 Each individual transect can be used to estimate                     baseline studies unlikely. Vessels of opportunity (see
               the variance of A                                                      Glossary) are the usual method. Inherent restric-
                                           R       A )2                               tions on the population of interest should be
                                           Di(A-D                                     recognized and considered.
                                     A     i-I
                                @ar(D)= -    L(R-1)                                e  If the same cruise track is resampled over time,
                                                                                      temporal trends can be assessed using vessels of
                                                                                      opportunity.
               where -bi= densi ty- estimate for transect i (number/               *  Because of the relative sparseness of debris in
                               kM2),                                                  the open ocean, large numbers of transects are
                        li = length of transect i (km),                               needed.
                        R = total number of transects, and                         o  A quality assurance program plan should be devel-
                        L = total length of all the transects (km).                   oped describing sampling design, field methods,
               See Burnham et al. (1980) for further details.                         and data analysis.
                                                                                   *.A statistician should be consulted at the survey
                 Exploratory data analysis can be done to compare                     planning stage and should be involved throughout
               densities between areas or latitude/ longitude bins.                   the study.







                   20         NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
                                                                                            Appendix




                                                                                                                   METHOD FOR MEASURING 100 METERS OUT FROM THE SIDE OF THE
                                                                                                                   SHIP OF-PENDING ON THE HeGHT OF THE OBSERVER ANVE WATER
                                                                                                                   LEVEL
                          The litter at sea survey is designed to produce information on the                       40
                      distribution of all floating, man-made material which can be seen
                      floating on the water from a ship.
                          The system depends on several factors which will affect its
                      accuracy.                                                                                                                              Hortzon
                      1.  How rough is the surface of the sea? Is it too rough to see every-                       30                                   sup-8
                          thing floating? A wind of force 3 or more usually causes too                             -E                                   sue     Water lavd
                          many waves to allow the observer to see everything within a band                                                                         100 m
                          100 m from the side of the ship.
                      2. Ile density of floating litter, or how much litter there is in an                         20
                          area can only be measured accurately by 'sampling.' This means
                          that everything seen within a known area should represent the                            0
                          amount of litter floating in an area much larger all around. By
                          Isampling,' this amount can be estimated from the small area                             10
                          being measured.


                                                                                                                   0
                                                              Ile litter at sea survey works on                                                    loom
                                                          the following idea:
                                                              Record the time every 5 minutes.                     Using the guide above, cut out a paper or cardboard triangle that
                                                          All items of litter recorded in each 5-                  is at the required angle given for your height above the water. This
                          Smin-
                                                          mmute period have been seen in the                       angle is given by a line drawn between point A and your height above
                                                          area shaded. This area is 100 m wide                     the water. Keeping the right angle of the triangle towards you, look
                                                          and 5 minutes long. If the ship's                        along the remaining edge of the triangle out from the side of the ship.
                                                          speed is recorded, then this area can                    Where this meets the water, that point will be 100 meters out from the
                                                          be easily worked out. From this the                      side of the ship.
                                                          number of litter items/km2 can be
                                                          estimated. This figure can then be                       WHAT Do I RECORD ABOUT THE FLOATING LITTER SEEN?
                                                          compared with any other measured
                          0 min-
                                            loom          anywhere else, if the same method                        Any item of floating litter seen within the 100-meter band can be
                                                          has been used.                                           described, if it cannot be fully identified, e.g.:
                                                                                                                   I egg box, polystyrene, undamaged
                                                                                                                   1 paper cup
                      WHAT Do I RECORD?                                                                            1 plastic sheet about 6 feet long and 2 feet wide
                                                                                                                   2 wooden planks about 3 feet by 2 feet
                      1 . The position of the ship at the start of recording (lat. and long.).                     8 cardboard sections all about 2 feet square and corrugated
                      2.  'Me ship's speed in knots.                                                                  cardboard
                                                                                                                   1 plastic container, washing up liquid
                      3.  Your height above the water in meters.
                      4.  The approximate wind speed and direction.                                                If a particular item cahnot be identified, then simply record it as
                      5.  Ile time ever 5 minutes.                                                                 one item made of one of the following:
                      6.  The ship's position at the end of your recording Oat. and long.).                        1. wow                     6.    plastic
                      7. Number of litter items seen within each 5-minute period of time.                          2. fishbox                 7.    polystyrene
                      8.  Identify as closely as you can every item of litter you see. What                        3. all paper and           8.    metal drums of all sizes
                          it is made out of is especially important. If you cannot tell, do not                       cardboard items         9.    glass bottles, containers, fishing
                          guess!!                                                                                  4. fishing net                    floats, etc.
                      9.  Can I clearly see the whole of the width of the sampling area,                           5. rope
                          from the side of the ship out to 100 meters?                                             As a general rule, items which cannot be described at an should
                                                                                                                   be listed as unidentified. Tlie purpose of the survey is to collect
                      N=. It is important that only the items of litter seen within the 100-                       information on the materials making up the litter as well as the num-
                      meter band are recorded. Others will make all the results wrong.                             ber of items seen.
                                                                                                                   T.J. Dixon
                                                                                                                                                        St
                                                                                                                                                                W
                                                                                                                                                                  at a_

























































                                                                                         Appendix Figure A
                                                                Offshore marine litter survey (The Tidy Britain Group).






                                                                               CHAPTER I'Shipboard Sighting Surveysfor Large Debris Itents            21





                                                     SmEm RECORDiNG HEADwGs FoR EAcH Dup

                                                     Date       Ship's name                       Arind speed
                                                                Ship's route (destination)        Mind direction
                                                                Ships speed
                                                                Ship's position: Start     Finish


                                                              Number of
                                                     Time     items      Description
















                                                                  Appendix Figure A (Continued)







            22      NOAA Technical. Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual



                                        RECORD OF SHIPBOARD OBSERVATIONS OF DERELICT FISH NETS
                                               AND DISABLEMENT OF VESSELS BY MARINE LITTER


                                      This form should be included in your ship's Marine Mammal Report which
                                      is forwarded to: Platforms of       rtunity Promm, NMML. 7600 Sand Pt.
                                      Way N.E.. Bldg. 4 Seattle, WA 9=5 (F/NWC3)

                                DERELICT NET OBSERVATION:


                                WE OF VESSEL
                                LOCATION OF NET (LORAN or coordinates)
                                DATE
                                REPORTER (name, address, phone)
                                DESCRIPTION OF NET:                        ell
                                      Stretch-mesh size
                                      Material (monofil nylon, polyprop, etc.)
                                      Color

                                      Twine diameter
                                      Attached floats (number. description)
                                      Estimated size (length. volume, etc.)
                                      Number and tyne of marine mammals, birds, fish in net

                                  If  possible, take photographs and forward small representative. sample of
                                net and floats to above address.



                                VESSEL DISABLEMENT:


                                NAME OF VESSEL
                                LOCATION OF DISABLEMENT (LORAN or coordinates)
                                DATE
                                CONTACT FOR FURTHER INFCP.IATICN


                                CAUSE OF DISABLEMENT:
                                      Net           Rope          Sheet plastic          Other
                                DESCRIPTION OF DEBRIS:
                                      Material (monofil nylon, polyprop. etc.)
                                      Color
                                      Size (length, volume. wt., etc.)
                                      Twine diameter
                                      Floats attached (number, description)
                                      Stretch-mesh size
                                Corrective Action (tow to port, cleared without assistance, divers)


                                ADD ANY ADDITIONAL REMARKS ON REVERSE OF 'THIS FORM.


                                (NMML- will forward this form to NMFS1 Auke Bay La@boratory)


                                                              Appendix Figure B
                    Offshore marine litter data form used by NOAA/National Marine Mammal Laboratory, Marine Mammal
                                                               Sighting Program.






                                                                     CHAPTER 2: Shipboard Sighting Surveysfor Large Debns Item    23




                           MARINE MAMMAL SIGHTING FORM
                           * DO NOT FILL IN BOXES PRECEDED BY AN ASTERISK



                           1.,NAME                                                  RECORD ID
                             VESSEL                                              YR           DAY   1 2 3 4 5 6
                           2. DATE (Yr./Mo./Day) & TIME (local) OF SIGHTING       I @ "10 1 1 1          1 1
                                                                               7 8 9 10 11 12             13 14 15 16
                           3. LATITUDE (degrees/minutes/lOths)-N/S                                                 7
                                                                                                 18 19 20 21 22     23
                           4. LONGITUDE (degrees/minutes/lOths)-E/W                         I  1    1              7
                                                                                            24 25   26 27 28 29     30
                           5. SPECIES     Common name               Scientific name         FF       TENTATIVE -F@
                                                                                            33 34                   35
                           6. NUMBER SIGHTED                    +                       C-1. - F-1       I I 1     1:1
                                                                                                 36       37 38  39 40
                           7. BEHAVIOR                                                                        *  1=
                                                                                                                45 46

                           8.ANGLE FROM 13OW                 9. INITIAL SIGHTING DISTANCE
                                 (10's of degrees) 47 48
                                                                                               10's of meters      F]
                                                                                                             49 50 51
                           10.VISIBILITY             - 11 - SEA STATE (Beaufort)                    12. VIS CODE   F@
                                                                                                                    52
                           13. WEATHER                                    14. SEA SURFACE TEMP (' C)     F] =
                                                                                                          53     54 55
                           15.PLATFORMCODE *F17M                           16.TIMEZONE ï¿½[--] =
                                                   56 57 58 59                               60     61 62

                           17. How did you identify animal (s)? Sketch and describe animal; associated organisms;
                              behavior (include closest approach); comments.
























                                                              64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80





                                                         Appendix Figure B (Continued)






                                                                 Cha ter 3
                                                                        P

                                                    Shipboard Trawling Surveys
                                                        For Small Debris Items



             General Description                                            lematical. In this case, small debris surveys are typi-
                                                                            cally conducted in conjunction with other oceano-
             To sample floating small (and some medium)         debris      graphic surveys (i.e., vessels of opportunity). Restric-
             from a moving vessel, a surface sampler (e.g., neus-           tions to the population of interest can arise. For
             ton net) is pulled along the sea surface to collect            example, in studies done in conjunction with large
             debris. The lowest size of the small debris sampled            surveys of fish, larvae, the areas chosen and the sur-
             depends on mesh of the net used. The upper limits              vey design used are appropriate for the objectives of
             of medium debris sampled depend on the size of the             the fish larvae survey, and not necessarily for the de-
             opening (mouth). The density of debris is calculated,          bris survey. Whether or not a restriction of the
             and the distribution of the debris is mapped.                  population of interest exists and whether or not it is
               Most studies of small floating debris have been              significant in relation. to the objectives of the debris
             conducted in conjunction with large surveys of fish            survey have to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
             larvae or plankton; such surveys typically cover large
             oceanic areas (e.g., North Atlantic-Colton et al.
             1974; southeastern continental shelf and slope water           Field Measurement
             of the United States-van Dolah et al. 1980; sea sur-
             face off the southwestern Cape Province of South               The number, type, density, and weight of small debris
             Africa-Ryan 1988b). Some surveys have been made                in a strip transect are common variables of interest.
             in harbors and bays (Trulli et al. 1990; U.S. EPA
             1990b; Yukinawa and Mio 1990). Most, if not all, of
             the studies to date concerning floating small debris           Description
             would be considered to be baseline studies (see Table
             6 for sources).                                                A surface sampler (e.g., a neuston net) is deployed by
                                                                            I or 2 people to sample the surface water while the
                                                                            ship is moving at speeds usually <5 knots. The net is
             Ob ectives and Purpose                                         placed on a boom so that it can sample water sur-        I
                                                                            faces outside the ship's wake, either to the side of the
             Typical objectives are as follows:                             ship or forward of the bow. The vessels used by a
               1. Estimate types and quantities of small debris,            harbor studies program are shown in Figure 4. The
               2. determine distribution of small debris, and               amount of time the net is sampling (or alternately,
               3. assess changes in the types and amounts            of     not sampling) is calculated by one person watching
                  small debris in given areas over time.                    the net during the tow. The net may be equipped
                                                                            with a flowmeter to measure the volume of water
                                                                            sampled directly (Carpenter 1976), although debris
             Population of Interest                                         may foul the flowmeter, causing it to fail. The width
                                                                            of the strip is determined by the width of the open-
               As with sighting surveys, various types of debris in a       ing (mouth)'of the net used (Table 6). Length of the
             large oceanic area are usually the populations of in-          transect is the straight-line distance traveled, deter-
             terest. The population of interest can be as small as          mined by the ship's speed during the transect and
             the floating debris in harbors (Trulli et al. 1990; U.S.       duration of tow. Lengths of transects from previous
             EPA 1990b; Yukinawa and Mio 1990) and as large as              studies varied from 0.065 nmi to 13 nmi (Table 6). In
             floating debris in coastal and oceanic waters between          areas of high debris density, lengths will be shorter
             Cape Cod and the Caribbean Sea (Colton et al.                  because the net can be towed only until it is full.
             1974). While smaller areas can usually be surveyed             Longer tows are typically made in areas of low debris
             easily, surveys of large oceanic areas are more prob-          density; short tows (e.g., 2 min in length) may miss


                                                                                                                                    25






               26        NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                    A                              OSV Peter W. Anderson






                                                                                                                       Capstan

                                                                                                            Deployment
                                      Aft sta                                                                  and
                                                                                                          retrieval line

                                      lx2x4-m neuston
                                     net, 0.33-mm rnesh
                       Whaler                                                                    Forward stay


                                                                                  "*--Telescopin boom





                      B                                           Whaler





                                                                        K-A
                                         0.5xlx2-m Neuston net,                    ""@Sleeve
                                             0.33-mm mesh
                                                                                                                                          Figure 4
                                                                                  rc     Fixed boom                                Example of sampling
                                                                                                                                   vessel equipped with
                                                                                                                                   telescoping boom
                                                                                                                                   (from the U.S. En-
                                                                                                                                   vironmental Protec-
                                                                                                                                   tion Agency [ 1990b]).



               the small debris entirely. The size of debris sampled                    the net. Tows should not be made in strong winds
               is determined by the mesh size of the net (Table 6).                     because the net will sail out of the water.
               Larger mesh sizes do not collect all of the smallest-                    Net mesh-The size of debris collected by the surface
               sized debris.                                                            sampler depends on the size of the net mesh. Ulti-
                                                                                        mately, the particular debris of interest will influence
                                                                                        the net mesh size. Carpenter (1976) and the U.S.
               Variables to Consider                                                    EPA (1990b) recommend using a net mesh of 0.333
                                                                                        mm to sample polystyrene spherules. We therefore
               Weather-If the sea is too choppy, tows should not be                     recommend that 0.333-mm mesh net be used in most
               made because the net will be submerged or be com-                        cases because it will catch most sizes of small debris.
               pletely out of the water, and it will not sample the                     Ship's Speed-Most tows are made at speeds of 5
               surface waters. In addition, debris may become                           knots or less (Table 6), although some larger mesh
                                                                                                                       Capsta

                                                                                                           De      ment
                             TA             ta                                                                 pl eonyd
                                                                                                          retrieval line

                                         x4
                                     net
                                                                                                      ad   stay













































               resuspended in the, water column below the level of                      nets may be used at speeds up to 7 knots. The ship






                                                                                            CHAPTER 3: Shipboard. Trawling Surveysfor Small Debris Itons                        27


                                                                                              Table 6
                                                                Examples of nets used to sample floating small debris.

                                                                                                         Net                  Description                Length of
                      Reference                      Net                                                 mesh                 of tow                     tow (nmi)

                      Austin and Stoop-              3/4 opening plankton net                            Not                  5-min surface,             Not stated
                      Glas (1977)                                                                        stated               tow

                      Environmental                  Neuston-type net with dimensions:                   0.33 m               30-min tow at              Variable
                      Protection Agency              I X 2 X 4 m, 0.5 X I X 4 m, 0.5 X       I X                              2 knots                    depending
                      (1990b); Trulli et al.         2 m                                                                                                 on slick
                      (1990)                                                                                                                             size and
                                                                                                                                                         debris
                                                                                                                                                         density

                      Carpenter et al.               Oblique plantkton tows with 0.5-m                   0.333 mm             Not stated                 Not stated
                                                     diameter, at mouth


                      Carpenter and                  1-m diameter neuston net                            0.33 mm              30-min. to                 1-3
                      Smith (1972)                                                                                            6-1 / 2-hr tows
                                                                                                                              at 2 knots


                      Colton et al. (1974)           2 X I m rectangular neuston net                     0.947 mm             10-min. tow at             0.83
                                                                                                                              5 knots


                      Day and Shaw                   Ring net (1.3-m mouth diameter,                     0.333 mm             10-min tow at              Q.50
                      (1987)                         4.5-m length)                                                            5.6 km/h

                      Day et al. (1990b)             Sameoto neuston sampler: 0.5 m                      0.500 mm             10-min tow at              0.33
                                                     wide X 0.3 m high X 0.6 m long                                           2 knots

                      FAO (1989)                     No details given                                    1.4 cm               20-min tow at              0.83-1
                                                                                                                              2.5-3 knots


                      Gregory et al.                 Sameoto andjarozynski aluminum-                     0.475,               -1 -hr tow at              4-6.5
                      (1984)                         framed otter-style neuston net (60-cm               0.860 mm             4-6-'/2 knots
                                                     wide mouth), 0.860 mm or
                                                     0.475 mm net mesh (40 cm X
                                                     40 cm or 60 cm X 40 cm)


                      Morris (1980a)                 Neuston sledge                                      0.32 mm              20 to 45-min               0.67-3
                                                                                                                              tows at 2-4
                                                                                                                              knots


                      Morris and Hamilton            Lowestoft plankton sampler                          0.270 mm             Not stated                 Not stated
                      (1974)

                      Ryan (1988a)                   1.57 m X 0.42 m rectangular                         0.90 mm              2-min tow                  0.65
                                                     neuston net                                                              at I m/sec


                      Shaw (1977)                    Sameoto andjarozynski seston                        0.363 mm             15-min tow                 1
                                                     tow: 0.4 in wide mouth                                                   at 4 knots


                      Shaw and Mapes                 Sameoto andjarozynski seston                        0.363 mm             I nmi                      1
                      (1979)                         tow

                      van Dolah et al.               I m X 2 m Boothbay neuston net                      0.947 mm             10-min tow at              0.84-0.87
                      (1980)                                                                                                  2.5 m/sec or
                                                                                                                              15"min tow at
                                                                                                                              1.8 m/sec







               28        NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                                                                             Table 6 (continued)

                                                                                              Net                Description             Length of
                    Reference                  Net                                            mesh               of tow                  tow (nmi)

                    Yukinawa and Mio           Ring net with 1.4 m diameter                   1.7 min at         10 min at               0.5
                    (1990)                     mouth                                          mouth,             3 knots
                                                                                              0.5 mm
                                                                                              at cod end


                    Wilber (1987)              1 X 0.5 m neuston net                          0.333,             1 nmi
                                                                                              0.500 mm


                    Wong et al. (1974)         80 cm X 30.5 cm Kohl scientific                0.150 mm           10 to 15-min            0.67-1.25
                                               model neuston net                                                 tows at 4-5
                                                                                                                 knots





               must be going faster than the tide in bays and sounds.                        contains a suggested data form for use with surface
               For nets with a 0.333-mm mesh, we recommend a tow-                            sampling, and Figure 6 contains a suggested data
               ing speed of approximately 2 knots. The duration of                           form for sorting samples.
               the tow depends on the amount of debris in the water;
               however, a tow should be made for at least 10 min.                            Material and Personnel
               The duration of the tow also will be influenced by
               other ship operations and will have to be determined                          Basic equipment needed for sampling small debris is
               on a case-by-case basis. The speed of the ship should                         as follows:
               be such that there is no backwash.
                                                                                             0  To collect the samples:
                                                                                                neuston net (surface sampler) and all equipment
                                                                                                needed to deploy the net
               Data Collection                                                                  log forms (sample collection) (see Figure 5)
               The following information should be recorded each                             *  To analyze the samples:
               time a sampler is -deployed.                                                     pre-weighed vials
                                                                                                bottles to store samples/labels for the vials
                    time of day                                                                 trays for sorting and drying samples
                    location                                                                    forceps (to sort samples)
                    date                                                                        magnifying glass (to identify samples)
                    volume of water sampled (if the net has a flow-                             data sheets (for sarnple analysis) (see Figure 6)
                    meter) or time the net is not sampling rounded to                           gloves
                    the nearest 0.25 min (if net does not have a                                30-L bags for medium debris
                    flowmeter); without a flowmeter, duration of sam-                        No standard surface sampling net is available; Car-
                    pling equals duration of tow minus duration of                           penter (1976) describes a variety of nets, although no
                    net not sampling                                                         prices are given. The Sameoto and jarozynski (1969)
                    distance traveled: starting and ending position                          net will cost about $75 (1991 U.S. dollars), while
                    (latitude/longitude) or duration of transect and                         other neuston nets may cost $100-$300 (1991 U.S.
                    ship's speed                                                             dollars) depending on mesh size and type of frame
                    width of sampler (fi)Ced by choice of net)                               used Ua Halstead, Research Nets, Inc., Bothell, WA,
                    sea state and tidal conditions                                           pers. commun. August 1991). Square-mouthed nets
                    presence/size of debris concentrations                 (if sam-          will give a less variable area sampled than ring nets
                    pled) /current features                                                  (H. Trulli, Battelle Memorial Institute, Duxbury, MA,
                  Few forms have been published for recording                                pers. commun. January 1991); therefore, square-
               sample collection. Appendix Figure A (this chapter)                           mouthed nets are preferred over ring nets.
               contains the sample collection form used by the U.S,                          Budgeting $1,500 for supplies should cover the inci-
               Environmental Protection Agency (1990b). Figure 5                             dental items.






                                                                      CIMPTER 3: Shipboard Trawling Surveysfor Small Debris Item        29



                       Observers:                                                Date (Yr/Month/Day):
                       Ship:                                                     Sea State or Tide:

                       Tow/Sample No.
                       Starting Location:                        lat             Ending Location:                       ]at

                                                                 long                                                   long

                       Time: Start                                End                             Total

                       Time Not Sampling                                         Time Sampling

                       Ship's Speed at Start of Tow-

                       Width of Sampler


                       Comments: e.g., (a) unusual weather conditions, (b) problems encountered while sampling.





























                                                                         Figure 5
                                           Suggested data form for collecting surface samples of small debris.


                The major cost of the project is ship time, as dis-            must have a retractable boom for net deployment or
              cussed in sighting surveys (Chapter 2). For sampling             must have the capacity for a fixed boom (Figure 4).
              inshore waters and harbors, smaller boats may be                   Required personnel include researchers who are
              used, thus reducing costs as noted in Chapter 2. For             experienced in or trained in the use of a surface sam-
              example, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency                pler. Training in safety issues is essential, including
              (1990b) used 5 in (17 ft) Boston Whaler skiffs in                potential health risks from handling landbased
              some of the harbor surveys. In all cases, the ship               wastes such as hypodermic needles.






           30      NOAA Technical Report NNOFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual



                  Tow/Sample Number                                 Wet/Dry Weight



                                                                                                      Presence of
                       Item           Color        Wear         Shape        Length        Width      Encrusting
                                                                                                         Biota











































                                                                 Figure 6
                                      Suggested data form for analysis of surface samples of small debris.


            .Quality Assurance Program                                 0  choice of the population of interest and any re-
                                                                          strictions to it
            Most published papers give enough information to           0  details on sampling design
            understand how the study was done. Putting the in-         0  description of sampler including dimensions,
            formation into a standard format would facilitate             mesh size, and net maker
            comparison between studies. Suggested information          0  definition of tow length
            in a quality assurance program plan includes the fol-      0  how the tows were carried out (ship's speed,
            lowing:                                                       transect duration, net deployment)






                                                                       CHAPTER 3: Shipboard Trawling Surveysfor Small Debris Item       31
                 sorting/ handling of materials (sorting and stor-             egg and larvae surveys (Colton et a]. 1974; Carpenter
                 age), including proper handling of hazardous                  et al. 1982; Ryan 1988a), the design used for the
                 wastes                                                        small debris surveys was the same as the fish egg and
                 key for identifying material                                  larvae surveys: systematic sampling in a grid. Sam-
                 storage of material (who is responsible and the               pling both large debris and small debris would be
                 location of material)                                         possible using a systematic sample on a grid. An im-
                 data handling (checking and storage of data,                  portant design consideration would be the distance
                 sample tracking)                                              between the sampling stations (i.e., the possibility of
                 data analysis procedures                                      sighting the same piece of large debris from two dif-
                The EPA's Office of Marine and Estuarine Protec-               ferent stations should be zero). But one potential
              tion has a Standard Operating Procedure for the                  sampling design would be to sample the small debris
              Collection and At-Sea Processing of Neuston Samples              at the points on the'grid and carry out sighting sur-
              (SOP No. 4-35) (U.S. EPA 1987). We modified this                 veys as the ship is in transit between points. A second
              SOP to reflect marine debris. Appendix Figure B                  possibility would be concurrent sampling, which may
              (this chapter) contains a suggested SOP potentially              be possible depending on the amount of debris in
              applicable to collecting small floating debris.                  the area. For example, if the small debris surface
                                                                               sampler is towed for 1 hour, then sighting surveys
                                                                               may be done concurrently. Alternatively, if the sur-
              Field Sampling Designs                                           face tow is only made for 10 min, concurrent sighting
                                                                               surveys would bF questionable, particularly if the
              Ribic and Bledsoe (1986, 1990) addressed the ques-               density of larger debris was low (i.e., few larger debris
              tion of sample sizes for small debris surveys. They              items would be seen in 10 min).
              assumed that the small debris was randomly distrib-
              uted in the ocean and was not concentrated in any                Analytical Procedures
              areas. However, some evidence suggests that debris
              can be concentrated in certain areas by currents and
              other oceanographic and weather conditions. Ran-                 Handling of Material
              dom samples from nonuniformly distributed debris
              will yield tows with varying amounts of material, and            After collecting a sample, most researchers washed it
              the variance estimate from the tows will be large. Be-           and put it into a bottle for further analysis (see Table
              cause sample size calculations depend on an estimate             6 for references). A few researchers froze the sample
              of variability, large variance estimates increase the            or fixed it in a seawater-formalin mixture or in alco-
              number of required samples, a problem that has                   hol (e.g., 70% ethanol.). Preservation is preferable to
              been noted by researchers studying tar balls (Butler             freezing because freezing may crack the debris,
              and Morris 1974). For obvious debris concentrations              changing its size. The material in each tow was classi-
              such as drift lines, Carpenter (1976) recommended                fied as to category and measured. Table 3 (Chapter
              sampling perpendicular to the concentration or do-               1) lists some categories that could be used in sample
              ing circular transects. An alternative is to collect             analysis. We recommend that the material be classi-
              more samples in the concentrated areas to better de-             fied as to color and, if possible, wear. Encrusting
              fine the area of concentration, and then to use                  biota (which indicate length of time at sea) also
              declustering techniques (Isaaks and Srivastava 1989)             should be noted. The material in each tow should be
              to make an overall assessment. If the ob ective of the           weighed and counted. Most studies have not speci-
              study is just to find out what is in an area to deter-           fied wet or dry weight. We recommend using dry
              mine types of debris, sampling the concentrations                weight measurements, but in all cases investigators
              will be useful (e.g., U.S. EPA 1990b).                           should.indicate whether wet or dry weights are used.
                Because most researchers rarely do both sighting               When dry weight was specified, material was dried at
              surveys for large debris and surface sampling for                room temperature for I day (van Dolah et al. 1980)
              small debris (exceptions are,Day and Shaw 1987; and              to I week (Day et al. 1985). Figure 6 contains a sug-
              Day et al. 1990, a and b), the sampling designs for              gested sample analysis form.
              the two techniques are often considered separately.
              However, the sampling designs discussed in Chapter
              2 for sighting surveys can be used for surface sam-              Analysis of Data
              pling of small debris. Since many of the vessels of
              opportunity used for small debris sampling were gov-             Data are transformed into estimates of density (num-
              ernmental research ships carrying out large-scale fish           ber or weight/kM2)   . The equation for density follows







             32      NOAA Technical Report NMIFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual

             the strip transect estimate given in Chapter 2. There          nonparametric analyses, depending on the objectives
             are two ways to determine length of the tow (km):              of the study. Data collected from different areas in
             1. (duration of sampling) (speed of vessel), or                different years should not be compared because area
             2. straight-line distance between the starting and             differences cannot be distinguished from yearly dif-
                 ending coordinates (adjusted for distance the net          ferences. For data collected on a grid, geostatistical
                 was not sampling).                                         techniques may be useful for estimating density over
                              A                                             large areas (Isaaks and Srivastava 1989).
             The density of (D) (amount/kml) is as follows:

                                                                            Summary
                                      A _   n
                                      D -  Lw                               0   Density of small debris (number/weight per kM2)
                                                                                is the preferred field measurement.
             where w = width of the mouth of the net (km),                  0   The mesh of the sampling unit should be 0.333
                      L = total length of all the tows (km), and                mm, which will sample most small debris of inter-
                      n =  number or weight (g) of collected debris             est.
                           in all trawls.                                   0   Tows should be made at speeds of 2 knots for at
                                                                                least 10 min. The duration of the tow will be in-
                             of (A                                              fluenced by the amount of debris and ship
             The variability      D) (Burnham et al. 1980) can be
             calculated as:                                                     operations.
                                                                            0   Cost considerations make dedicated surveys for
                                         R A     A                              baseline studies unlikely.
                                         Y-liDi - D)2
                             A    A                                         0   If the restriction to the population of interest is
                             Var (D)                                            acceptable, vessels of opportunity that sample the
                                         L (R    1)                             same large oceanic area over multiple years
             where    1. = length of tow i (km),                                should be useful for assessment studies.
                      1                                                     0   Variability in amounts of debris per tow can be
                      D. = density estimate for tow i (in km2),                 large, thus increasing the required sample size
                      @ = total number of tows, and                             (number of tows) for a given level of confidence.
                      L = total length of all the tows (km).                *   The data are collected with a strip transect meth-
                                                                                odology, with the width of the net defining the
               The   data can be analyzed in a variety of ways de-              width of the  strip.
             pending on the study objectives. General descriptive           0   A quality assurance program plan should be pre-
             statistics (such as percent composition of the debris              pared that details sample design, sample col-
             from each sample or percent composition of all de-                 lection, sample p rocessing, and data analysis.
             .bris from a harbor) are useful as are maps;                   0   A statistician should be consulted at the survey
             exploratory data analysis can be used to look at dif-              planning stage and should be involved through
             ferences between areas and over time. Confidence                   the completion of the study. Experienced re-
             intervals for the density estimate can be calculated               searchers should be consulted concerning the use
             (Burnham et al. 1980) or various hypotheses con-                   of equipment (e.g., surface samplers, boat han-
             cerning density can be tested with parametric or                   dling).






                                                       CHAPTER 3: Shipboard Trawling Surveysfor Small Debris Item 33
                                                     A"pendix


                                                       BATTELLE
                                                Harbor Studies Program

                                                 Neustan Sampling Log


                      Date                                 Harbor
                              Do    MM   YY                        (NY,B0,GA,LA,PS)

                      Slick No.                            Slick Location

                      Replicate/Tow No.                    Sampling Platform

                      Start              TDI              TD2               Tine
                      Coordinatt-s:      Lat           N  Lon           W         (24 h)

                      Finish             TD1              T02               Time
                      Coordinates:       Lat           N  Lon           W         (24 h)


                      FIELD MEASUREMENTS               Collector's Initials:
                      Weather:   TE        Sea  State:           Wind: Speed               kt
                                   ode)                (coze-)          Direction          0

                      Net Frame Size:    1.0m  x 2.Om            Mesh Size:    0.1mm
                                         0.52 X 1.0m                           0.3mm
                                                                               0.5mm

                      Tow Area: Area of Tow - Duration of Tow                    h x
                                   Speed of Net Through the Water                 t X.
                                   Width of Net (Tow)                            m

                      Slick Type:                               Slick Area:            sq m
                    (Type 0-4 from Survey Plan)               (visual estimaCe)

                      LABORATORY SAMPLES COLLECTED                       11111111111111 @
                         Sample Types Collected for Sample Number            *AAXS88*

                         (initial Here and on Labels)

                                   Large Debris                         Small@DebrLs



                           COMMENTS:







                         Scientist:


                   (White - DATA MGR Yellow - PRGM MGR Pink          FIELD COORD GOLD       P.I.)


                                                    Appendix Figure A
                    Example of a sampling log used during EPA Harbor Studies Program survey (U.S. Environmental
                                                 Protection Agency 1990b)






             34      NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual



                                                                                 5. Shackles (0.63 cm or 1/4 in)
                                                                                 6. Kevlar cable-0.95 cm (3/8 in), or 0.95 cm
                                                                                 (3/8 in) nylon line
               Preparation                                                       7. Nylon braided line (0.32 cm or 1/8 in)
                                                                                 8. Hose clamps (various sizes)
               Supplies and Equipment                                            9. Plasticiar (1 L)
                                                                             10. Sorting trays
                 I .Two aluminum neuston net frames, 0.83 m X                11. Forceps
                    1.85 m X 0.04 m                                          12. Squirt bottles (for rinsing nets)
                 2. Two nylon neuston nets, 0.333-mm mesh size               13. Clear tape
                    (must fit aluminum frame)                                14. Labels
                 3. Laundry detergent                                        15. Log sheets
                 4. Stainless steel bridle (for   each neuston net           16. Cod-end bottle (i.e., 500 ml teflon) (also
                    and frame)                                                   called a "net bucket")


                                         0.33 mm
                                          Mesh net



                                            a


                                     Neu3ton frame
                                     and not


                                                                         0. mm




                                                                                                     .<-33"FL





                                                   Frame 1-112'              Se  ring    10"tlap
                                                                                 cu
                                                  aluminumiubing                 One   (passes inside
                                                                                        the frame)





                                              b
                                        Neuston not                                      Akirninum tabs
                                        with attached
                                        bridles

                                                                                             1/6'wire rope








                                                                 Eye with themble
                                                                                                 1/6"wire rope







                                                                                                   Swivel



                                                                                  112" trawl cable




                                                                Appendix Figure B
            Preliminary standard operations procedures for sampling surface small debris. Adapted from the plan described in the U.S.
            Environmental Protection Agency (1990b) Harbor Studies Program.






                                                                       CHAPTER 3: Shipboard Trawling Surveysfor Small Debris Items       35


                  The registered trademarks and materials suppli-                    ft) section of Kevlar cable or nylon line with
                ers are referenced for reader convenience in                         an eye splice.
                replicating experiments and do not represent en-                9.   With a 0.79 cm (5/16 in) shackle, attach one
                dorsement by the U.S. Environmental Protection                       end of the Kevlar cable to the 0.63 cm (1/4
                Agency.                                                              in) shackle thatjoins the two bridles.

                                                                                Preparations for Deploying the
                Cleaning                                                        Net and Components to be Used
                  No special cleaning procedures are required for               for Collecting Samples
                collecting neuston samples for small debris analy-              1.   Request that the Captain slow the ship to tow-
                sis. Equipment can be washed with detergent at                       ing speed (2 knots) before arriving on station.
                the end of the sampling period. Netting may also                2.   Rig the main towing sheave to the last segment
                be solvent-cleaned if soiled with grease or tar.                     of the telescoping boom.
                                                                                3.   Carry the assembled net, bridle, and tow cable
                                                                                     (or nylon line) to the area of deployment.
                Assembly of Net and Frame                                       4.   Thread the tow cable or nylon line through
                                                                                     the sheave mounted on the boom.
                1.   Match each pair of the four flaps bordered                 5.   Take up the slack (by hand) and tie off the
                     with grommets at the mouth of the neuston                       tow cable (or nylon line) to the bits, forward
                     net (2 opposed flaps = 0.9 m and 2 opposed                      of the deployment area.
                     flaps = 1.9 m) with the appropriate sides of the
                     neuston frame as shown in Figure a.                        Net Deployment
                2.   By threading the 0.32 cm (1/8 in) braid
                     through the grommets and around the frame,                 1.   With the boom fully extended, signal the
                     secure the flaps of the net to the aluminum                     winch operator to lower the boom over the
                     frame. Ensure that the frame attaches to the                    side of the ship. This procedure will lower the
                     outer surface of the net flaps. The net passes                  net into the water and extend it well beyond
                     through the frame as shown in Figure a.                         the wake of the ship.
                3.   After securing the net to the frame, remove                2.   After the boom has been completely lowered,
                     the two 0.63 cm (1/4 in) stainless steel bridles                deploy the Kevlar or nylon tow cable until half
                     (Fig. b) from the case.                                         of the neuston frame (0.42 m) remains sub-
                4.   Arrange the two towing bridles so that the                      merged below the surface of the ocean.
                     longest cables (one for each bridle) are di-               3.   Inform the bridge to mark the time for the
                     rected away from the net and so that the short                  start of the neuston tow.
                     cables (two for each bridle) are directed to-              4.   Record the requested information on a Neu-
                     ward the net.                                                   ston Sample Log form.
                5.   With 0.63 cm (1/4 in) shackles, connect the                5.   Tow the net for 10-min at a speed of 2 knots or
                     two short cables of each bridle to the alumi-                   until full. In rough seas, estimate the time the
                     num tabs provided on each corner of the                         net completely leaves the water or completely
                     neuston net. Shackle the short cables of one                    submerges while being towed.
                     bridle to the left side of the frame and the
                     short cables of the other bridle to the right              Net Retrieval
                     side of the frame.
                6.   With a 0.63 cm (1/4 in) shackle, connect the               At the end of the 10 min towing period, retrieve
                     free ends of the bridles together (if not al-              the net using the tow cable (or line).
                     ready done).
                7.   With a stainless steel hose clamp, attach a 1-L
                     precleaned glass jar to the cod end of the ny-             Processing Samples
                     lon neuston net.
                8.   With 0.79 cm (5/16 in) cable clamps and                    1. Discard all water retained in the jar at the cod
                     thimbles, terminate each end of the 45 m (150                   end of the net.


                                                            Appendix Figure B (continued)







             36      NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                2.  Loosen the hose clamp that secures the cod              necessary to alter the procedures outlined in the
                    end to the net.                                         SOP or to deviate from the guidelines appearing
                3.  Support the cod end of the net over a tray and          in the quality assurance program plan, make sure
                    separate the cod end from the net.                      that a Sample Alteration Form (U.S. EPA 1990b) is
                4.  Empty the contents of the jar and net into the          completed for that particular tow.
                    tray. Larger material may have to be removed
                    from the mouth end because it cannot pass
                    through the cod end.                                    Training
                5.  Rinse all net surfaces into the tray.
                6.  Transfer contents of the net into prelabeled            All personnel responsible for the collection and
                    jars (I L) or bags.                                     preservation of samples must perform satisfacto-
                7.  Precautions:                                            rily under the direct supervision of a qualified
                    a. Small and lightweight items are easily lost in       supervisor. This includes the proper implementa-
                       windy conditions and extra care, must be             tion of safety guidelines.
                       taken.                                                 The proficiency of the trainee will be observed
                    b. Rubber gloves and protective clothing                throughout the entire survey. The supervisor will
                       should be worn because of possible disease-          judge the ability of the trainee to process debris
                       bearing debris (e.g., from combined sewer            samples.
                       overflow systems).


                Documentation and Labeling

                Record all required information on a Neuston
                Sample Log. If, during a neuston tow, it becomes


                                                          Appendix Figure B (continued)





                                                                        Chapter 4

                                                                     Beach Surveys
                                                      for Small to Large Debris Items


               General Description                                                 have been used in this chapter for recommendations
                                                                                   and guidance. Information from these two programs
               On-land or beach surveys can be classified into two                 is summarized here because much of the written ma-
               types: 1) where debris on a particular beach is of                  terial is difficult to acquire (e.g.,        . government
               intrinsic interest (beach-focused studies); and 2)                  reports) and spans some 20 years. For people plan-
               where debris on the beach is an indicator of oceanic                ning a survey, this information can aid in project
               conditions (ocean-focused studies) (Ribic and John-                 development, show how initial study designs are in-
               son 1990). Beach surveys are known to give a                        fluenced by the debris types, and explain how
               distorted picture of the composition of marine debris               programs may change over time.
               owing to different fates of materials at sea (Dixon
               and Dixon 1981a). To date, no attempts have been
               made to assess what proportion of debris discharged                 Objectives and Purpose
               from ships at sea later washes ashore. Some surface
               drift experiments using plastic and glass bottles (i.e.,            There are two general objectives of on-land (beach)
               the release of bottles at sea and their recovery on                 surveys for marine debris:
               land) have achieved high recovery rates in the North                1.  To determine the types and amounts of debris on
               Sea (Dixon and Cooke 1977). Beach surveys inte-                         beaches in a specified geographical area at a cer-
               grated with at-sea surveys are a potentially powerful                   tain time. This objective is generally associated
               tool.                                                                   with baseline studiesand is beach-focused.
                 To assess marine debris on a beach, surveyors                     2.  To determine how types and amounts (or both)
               count and classify individual debris items or record                    of debris on beaches change over time. This ob-
               them as present or absent. Debris may or may not be                     jective is associated with assessment studies
               removed from the beaches depending on study ob-                         (usually trend assessment), and can consider ves-
               jectives. Entire beaches or smaller sections                            sel-source debris or specific landbased debris
               (transects) may be surveyed. Individual pieces of                       such as sewage items and medical wastes (i.e.,
               small debris are usually counted within randomly                        ocean-focused studies).
               placed or predetermined transects; small debris gen-
               erally is not removed.                                                These two objectives require different field de-
                 This chapter addresses both beach-focused and                     signs, as noted by the Assessment Working Group
               ocean-focused studies considering vessel-source de-                 (Ribic 1990). For the first objective, standard survey
               bris and landbased debris. New international and                    sampling techniques can be applied (Gilbert 1987).
               national disposal restrictions have increased interest              For the second objective, the Assessment Working
               in using ocean-focused studies to detect changes in                 Group (Ribic 1990) recommended that selected
               vessel-source debris on beaches. Therefore, addi-                   beaches be monitored over time. The selection of the
               tional attention is given to the use of beach surveys to            beaches for monitoring should be guided by statisti-
               monitor vessel-source debris. This will be done by                  cal sampling techniques such as stratification and
               presenting two case studies using beach surveys to                  randomness (Gilbert 1987). This is similar to a time-
               detect changes in vessel-source debris. The first is a              series approach used in water quality monitoring
               program developed by Theodore Merrell and Scott                     (Lettenmaier 1978).
               Johnson (NOAA, National Marine Fisheries Service,
               Auke Bay, Alaska) to study very large debris (i.e.,
               trawl web net fragments). The second is the program                 Population of Interest
               developed by the Tidy Britain Group in England to
               study large debris (i.e., plastic containers). The devel-           For baseline, beach-focused studies, the population
               opers of the two programs have published extensively                of interest is all or some subset of debris on all, the
               on their study designs and methods, and their results               beaches in a defined geographic area at a particular

                                                                                                                                                37







             38      NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
             time. Debris can be landbased or vessel-source. Re-                promontory). Oceanic influences may be docu-
             strictions to the population of interest are generally             mented from recent hydrographic studies, such
             due to access problems (e.g., private beaches, remote              as surface drift experiments;
             areas). Consideration of how debris types or amounts           2.  collect vessel-source debris (due to physical char-
             may be different on the restricted beaches compared                acteristics of the beach, such as substrate type
             to the unrestricted beaches is necessary to decide if              and slope); and
             problems will occur. For trend assessment, ocean-fo-           3.  be remote from populated areas (urban sources
             cused studies, the population of interest is the                   of pollution, recreation areas) and estuarine ar-
             amount of marine debris in an unspecified area of                  eas (e.g., no known or limited landbased sources
             the adjoining water mass that is swept onto beaches                of debris), unless methods are available for
             after a certain time interval. Vessel-source or specific           clearly identifying each source of debris.
             landbased debris on beaches is being used as an indi-
             cator of the oceanic debris condition. The degree to             Information on oceanic current patterns and ves-
             which beach debris reflects marine debris conditions           sel traffic information (Requirement 1) can be used
             in the open water is not commonly evaluated. For               to identify beaches that are more likely than others to
             both types of studies, beach dynamics, such as depo-           collect vessel-source debris. Information on currents
             sition rates and current influences, need to be                is often used after a study has been done to interpret
             understood.                                                    the results.
                                                                              If fulfilling the third requirement is impossible,
                                                                            some a p7iori decision must be made about differenti-
             Historical Information                                         ating between vessel-source and landbased debris.
                                                                            For example, O'Hara (1989) used indicator items
                                                                            such as galley wastes, fishing/boating gear, and other
                                                                            characteristic operational wastes for vessel-source de-
             Baseline Studies                                               bris information. The Food and Agricultural Or-
                                                                            ganization (FAO 1989) decided that metal and glass
             Because baseline studies focus on beaches, informa-            debris are probably landbased because, given their
             tion on the numbers and types of beaches in the                weight, they likely would sink soon after being dis-
             population of interest is necessary. Other variables           charged from ships. However, on the shores of the
             such as distance to urban centers, coastal dumps and           North Sea, it was clear that metal and glass did wash
             landfills, recreational centers (e.g., campgrounds),           ashore from ships (Dixon and Dixon 1981). Further-
             and other debris sources would be useful to identify           more, metal and glass containers were found to be
             possible stratification variables to be used in study          prominent components of ships' garbage (Horsman
             design and to help in interpreting the data. Previous          1982). Any approaches and assumptions made to dis-
             records of types of debris may be useful in determin-          tinguish landbased and vessel-source debris should
             ing whether the majority of debris is landbased or             be described explicitly.
             vessel-source.                                                   The conditions for using beaches to indicate
                                                                            landbased marine debris are the same as the first two
                                                                            conditions for vessel-source debris indicator beaches.
             Trend Assessment Studies                                       Oceanic influences will be important to predict
                                                                            which areas of the coast may be vulnerable to
             Many studies have commented on factors that restrict           landbased debris (e.g., landbased debris coming
             the choice of beaches when the objective is trend              from harbors, river mouths, or offshore dumping ar-
             assessment. The debris of interest may be either ves-          eas). This information would be directly relevant as a
             sel-source debris or landbased debris (specifically            stratifying variable for the survey design. The poten-
             sewage-related items or medical waste).                        tial beaches to be used for landbased marine debris
               To use beach surveys as indicators of oceanic con-           do not have the remoteness condition necessary for
             ditions, indicator beaches must meet the following             vessel-source debris indicator beaches (Condition 3).
             conditions:                                                    Since landbased debris is generated by humans in
                                                                            populated areas, the potential beaches should not be
             1. have known oceanic influences (e.g., currents               isolated from areas of known human influence, such
                 running past or converging in the area) or be              as urban sources (e.g., sewage and industrial outfalls,
                 open to the marine environment (e.g., not shel-            harbors) or estuaries. The potential indicator
                 tered by a breakwater, island, or land                     beaches must collect landbased debris, so variables






                                                                           CHAPTER 4: Beach Surveysfor SmaH to Large Debrislierm       39
              affecting the choice of beaches would be the same                  Accumulation rate is the amount of debris that
              for both types of surveys.                                      washes and stays ashore on the sampling unit over a
                Variables to consider when doing beach surveys are            certain time period. In order to measure this, the
              the physical characteristics of the beach (slope, sub-          sampling unit must be cleared of all debris at the
              strate, composition, uniformity), prevailing weather            start of the sampling time period. This variable is
              factors (onshore winds, frequency of storms), beach             actually the accumulation rate of visible materials.
              accessibility (private, public; roads and parking               Many items become buried on beaches soon after
              nearby), and composition of debris on beach                     deposition, particularly the heavier items. In an ideal
              (landbased and vessel-source categories). The physi-            situation, observations should be made daily in order
              cal characteristics and accessibility of beaches                to produce the most accurate data.
              influence the number of potential beaches that can                 Standing stock is the amount of material on the
              be used for sampling. For example, beaches with low             sampling unit at a given point in time. In general, the
              or very steep gradients, or beaches consisting of boul-         sampling unit is not cleared of debris (this is dis-
              ders, should not be candidates for sampling.                    cussed further under Field Sampling Designs).
              Low-gradient beaches are especially unsuitable be-                 In some surveys, the variable that was measured
              cause. storm winds and surf scatter debris inland,              was unclear (FA0 1989). This becomes an important
              where it becomes hidden in vegetation. Boulder as               consideration because of the increased popularity of
              well as bedrock beaches also are unsuitable: debris             beach cleanups (CEE 1987b, 1988; O'Hara and
              between boulders is difficult to see; bedrock beaches           Debenham 1989; O'Hara and Younger 1990).
              are often too steep for walking and do not acCUMU7              Beaches with a cleanup history will only be suitable
              late debris. In the United States, preferred beaches            for measuring accumulation rate since the last
              for marine debris surveys have moderate-to-steep                cleanup.
              slopes, have sand or gravel substrate, and are ex-                 For small debris, standing stock usually is mea-
              posed to the open ocean. In addition, beaches                   sured because of the difficulty involved in removing
              should not be cleaned during annual "beach clean-               such items from the sampling unit. Accumulation
              ups" (unless the beach cleanup matches the sampling             rates are more easily measured for larger debris. Ac-
              frequency of the planned study).                                cumulation rate is the preferred measurement
                Physical characteristics of beaches affect debris             variable, particularly for trend assessment studies, be-
              turnover time (i.e., the rate of disappearance of de-           cause it will be more sensitive to changing oceanic
              bris from the beach), which is important for                    conditions (see Golik [1982] for discussion in relation
              determining sampling frequency, especially when                 to tar balls).
              measuring standing stock. For frequent sampling,                   Choices must be made concerning what particular
              weather factors influence the timing of sampling                debris items to study. In some cases, focusing on a
              (e.g., sampling should not be done during periods of            particular debris type will be as informative as enu-
              offshore winds or during storms). Beach accessibility           merating all debris types. This is particularly
              is important because private beaches usually have re-           important for ocean-focused studies where studying a
              stricted access; beaches in remote areas, as in Alaska,         known vessel-source or landbased debris type is im-
              may be prohibitively expensive to reach regularly. De-          portant. Fishing gear such as trawl web (e.g., Merrell
              bris composition will affect what is measured                   1985) and plastic containers (e.g., Dixon and Cooke
              (standing stock or accumulation rate) as well as what           1977) have been successfully used in ocean-focused,
              the sampling unit should be (e.g., the entire beach             vessel-source debris studies. The advantage of study-
              or transects). Sampling multiple high tide lines over           ing plastic containers is that they can be aged by
              ï¿½ reasonably narrow beach profile is ideal for getting          codes molded into the plastic body. Also, in some
              ï¿½ good sample of the debris composition in a sam-               cases, origin can be identified by codes on the con-
              pling unit.                                                     tainer. Information on manufacturing dates and
                                                                              country of origin can help in assessing changing ac-
                                                                              cumulation rates.

              Field Measurement

              Two basic variables can be measured: accumulation               Material and Personnel
              rate and standing stock. A choice must be made be-
              tween the two because both cannot be measured on                   Following is a list of suggested basic equipment for
              the same sampling unit.                                         an on-land (beach) survey.






              40       NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Maxine Debris Survey Manual
              ï¿½ Metric measurement                To measure length of             nel costs, but more supervision and training will be
                    tapes                         beach surveyed and               necessary to ensure quality of collected data. Beach
                                                  measure very large               surveys are considerably less costly than open-water
                                                  debris too big to lift. A        sighting surveys.
                                                  100-m tape is usually
                                                  adequate                         Data Collection
              ï¿½ Metric ruler                      For measuring mesh
                                                  sizes                              Suggested information to collect includes the
              ï¿½ Stakes, flagging tape,            To mark ends of the              following:
                    PVC (polyvinyl chloride)      survey area, to mark             I . Date
                    pipe                          transects                        2.  Time (start and end)
              ï¿½ Topographical map                 To mark survey area              3.  Location
                                                  or photographs                   4.  Weather conditions
                                                  (or both)                        5.  List of debris items by type and number (see Ap-
              ï¿½ Tags and paint for                For accumulation rate                pendix Figures A-D [this chapter])
                    marking very                  objects: marking pens            6.  Volume or approximate weight of large objects
                    large debris                  for medium and large             7.  Containers-geographical origins, bottlemaker
                                                  debris                               imprints
              ï¿½ Waterproof data forms                                              8.  Beach conditions (slope, substrate, etc.)
                    and clipboard                                                    The specific data to collect will depend on the ob-
              ï¿½ Random number table or            To choose random                 jectives of the beach survey. Most studies list all
                    calculator with random        transects; for standing          debris items and then, during the data analysis phase,
                    number generator              stock                            put the debris items into function or material-type
                 Knife/scissors                                                    categories or both. Some studies focusing on indica-
                 Heavy work gloves                                                 tor items or particular problems (e.g., entanglement)
                 Small and large                  To collect specimens             may list the debris categories before the data are col-
                    garbage bags                  or debris, if feasible           lected. Some general categories used by researchers
                 Scales:                          To weigh debris:                 were listed in Table 2 (Chapter 1). Few researchers
                    Spring scales of three        0-300 g, 0-2 kg, 0-20 kg         had defined landbased and vessel-source debris cat-
                    sizes are adequate                                             egories a priori.
                 jars with labels                 To sample small debris              Examples of forms used to collect data are in Ap-
                 Camera and film                  To photograph study              pendix Figures, A-D (this chapter). Because of the
                                                  area; photograph                 differences in survey objectives, no generic form can
                                                  entangled organisms              be suggested for all studies. Figure 7 contains a sug-
                 Prismatic compass                To fix locations in              gested template that can be adapted for specific
                                                  remote sites                     objectives. As noted in Chapter 1, we recommend the
              A  budget of $500-1,000 should cover the basic                       approach used by the Center for Marine Conserva-
              equipment.                                                           tion whereby subcategories describing function/
                                                                                   manufactured use are grouped under a set of mate-
                 At least two trained people should participate in                 rial-type categories.
              each survey; one to process debris and the other to
              record data. The alternative is to use one person to
              process debris and record the data into a tape re-
              corder. In Alaska, $25,000 per year is the total budget              Pilot Studies
              for beach surveys run by the National Marine Fisher-
              ies Service Auke Bay Laboratory (S. Johnson, NMFS                    Many of the factors listed in the third guideline (His-
              Auke Bay Laboratory, AK, pers. commun. April                         torical Information) are often not known before a
              1991). That budget allows two people to carry out a                  study starts. But if the study is long-term, this infor-
              total of 10 surveys on two or three islands in south-                mation is necessary to determine a successful design.
              east Alaska.                                                         Some information, such as location of dumping sites,
                 The major expenses of landbased surveys will be                   may be available from governmental agencies or uni-
              transportation to remote sites and personnel ex-                     versities, but other information may not. Pilot studies
              penses (including salary, lodging, and meals). The                   will be important if nothing is known about the
              use of volunteers to collect data will reduce person-                oceanographic influences to the beaches as well as






                                                                            CHAPTER 4: Beach Surveysfor SmaU to Large Debris Items        41



                      Observers:                                                                Date: Year/Month/Date


                      Sampling Unit           e.g., a beach or transect.                        Time:      Start

                                                                                                           End
                      Location (lat/long):            This is important for beaches not         Tide:
                                                      permanently marked.


                           Sampling Unit      Width      Both are important for                 Weather.
                                                         transects:


                                             Length      Length is important for
                                                         beaches. Beginning and
                                                         ending points should be
                                                         well-marked with flagging
                                                         and stakes.


                      Beach Condition:           Slope

                                                Substrate



                      Comments:





                                 Item                 Number          Weight               Dimensions (length/width)


                       This can either be a
                       list like that of the
                       Center for Marine
                       Conservation (1991)
                       and Cole et at.
                       (1990) or just
                       general categories
                       like those of FAO
                       (1989). [See forms
                       in Appendix 41



                                                                          Figure 7
                                                        Suggested template for beach survey forms.




              beach characteristics. For example, Johnson (1989)                plastic and glass bottles. Pilot studies will be neces-
              marked trawl net fragments to investigate seasonal                sary to develop techniques to differentiate between
              turnover rates on Alaska beaches. As another ex-                  vessel-source and landbased debris for specific geo-
              ample, the Tidy Britain Group measured turnover                   graphical areas, particularly if plastic containers are
              rate (shore retention rate) of containers by marking              the debris type of interest (Dixon and Cooke 1977).







                 42         NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
                 Quality Assurance Program                                                          sampling units are chosen; how sampling units are
                                                                                                    marked (if permanent units); how surveys are carried
                 Information concerning quality                  assurance program                  out in detail; how data are recorded, stored, and
                 plans for beach surveys is scarce. For studies in which                            checked for errors; and how analyses are performed.
                 data are collected by volunteers,              a training session to
                 guarantee the quality of the data is imperafive. Com-
                 mon problems with data collected by volunteers are                                 Field Sampling Designs
                 an overrepresentation of plastic and-an underestima-
                 tion of vessel-source debris (T. Dixon, unpubl. data).                             Beach surveys have been developed featuring many
                 Merrell's (1985) detailed beach survey is the closest                              different objectives and field sampling designs. Key
                 thing to instructions for a quality assurance program                              features of selected studies are listed in Table 7. Few
                 plan that has been published to date.                                              surveys have been designed for trend assessment
                     Generally, the following details should be included                            (Merrell 1985, FA0 1989, Cole et al. 1990). The field
                 in a quality assurance program plan for on-land sur-                               designs for three trend assessment studies are pre-
                 veys: objective of study; choice of population of                                  sented in Table 8.
                 interest and any restrictions; choice of debris items to                              Differences in field sampling designs are attribut-
                 be studied; details of the sampling design; definition                             able to differences in objectives and the types of
                 of the sampling unit; sample size calculations; how                                debris common to the areas. Merrell (1985) empha-



                                                                                             Table 7
                                                            Key features of selected beach surveys for marine debris.

                                                                                                               Sampling

                     Reference                     Purpose                   Variable                   Unit             Interval                     Notes

                     Vauk and              (1) Characterize debris           Accumulation           60-m length          Every            Sandy beach;
                     Schrey (1987)         on beach; (2) Use as              rate                   of beach             3 days           area not used for
                                           an indication of                                         (high tide                            recreation; wind
                                           problems at sea                                          line)                                 direction monitored.

                     Willoughby            Characterize litter on            Standing               50 M of              Once             Systematic sampling
                     (1986)                islands                           stock                  high tide                             of entire high
                                                                                                    line                                  tide line of
                                                                                                                                          representative islands
                                                                                                                                          in archipelago: .
                                                                                                                                          50-250 m between transects.


                     Cole et al.           (1) Characterize debris           Standing               3-5 sections         3-4              Variable substrate;
                     (1990); Manski        on beaches; (2) monitor           stock in some          atloo-1000           times a          recreational use;
                     et al. (1991)         at-sea debris                     areas;accu-            m of 42              year             different debris
                                                                             mulation rate          beachesin                             typesrecorded
                                                                             in others              8 parks

                     Merrell (1985)        Monitor for entangling            Standing               11 beaches           Annually         Beaches remote
                                           debris                            stock                  (I km each)                           from populated
                                                                                                    surveyed                              areas; sand and
                                                                                                                                          boulder/cobble
                                                                                                                                          substrate, moderate
                                                                                                                                          to steep slopes

                     Henderson et          Characterize fishing net          Not stated             Allbeaches           Regularly
                     al. (1987);           washed ashore on                                         on six atolls        patrolled
                     Henderson             beaches
                     (1988)

                     Manville Il           Characterize plastic              Standing               25 beaches           Once             Surveys opportunistic,
                     (1990)                debris                            stock                                                        beaches randomly
                                                                                                                                          chosen; outer Aleutian
                                                                                                                                          Islands surveyed






                                                                                                          CHAPTER 4: Beach Surveysfor Small to Large Debris Items                             43


                                                                                             Table 7 (continued)

                                                                                                                               Sampling

                        Reference                        Purpose                      Variable                     Unit               Interval                      Notes

                        Duronslet et al.         Document types and                   Standing                 3-4 transects          Monthly           Part of a study
                        (1991)                   amounts of man-made                  stock in                 3.3 m wide in                            dealing with strandings
                                                 debris                               some areas;              6 zones                                  of sea turtles; some
                                                                                      accumulation                                                      transects randomly
                                                                                      rate in others                                                    chosen; other, fixed;
                                                                                                                                                        length was variable,
                                                                                                                                                        depending on
                                                                                                                                                        first storm line and
                                                                                                                                                        tide stage

                        FACI (1989)              Pilot monitoring                     Standing                 1-6 beaches            Monthly           All transects run
                                                 program for marine-                  stock in 4 of            in 5 coun-             in 4 of 5         from low water line
                                                 based litter                         5 countries;             tries; 2-11            countries;        to back end of
                                                                                      accumulation             transects per          weekly/           beach; substrate
                                                                                      rate in I of 5           beach;I-to             biweekly          variable; varying
                                                                                      countries                I 00-m wide            in I of 5         recreational use;
                                                                                                               transects              countries         choice of beaches
                                                                                                                                                        restricted by funding
                                                                                                                                                        and availability of
                                                                                                                                                        labs to carry out
                                                                                                                                                        monitoring

                        Lindstedt and            Characterize debris                  Standing                 6 beaches;             Quarterly         4 beaches had
                        Holmes (1989)            on beaches                           stock                    3 established                            high recreational
                                                                                                               transects; 50                            use; 2 had low use
                                                                                                               m in length,
                                                                                                               10-77 m in
                                                                                                               width


                        Gregory et al.           Characterize debris                  Not stated               All accessible         Not
                        (1984)                   on beaches                                                    beaches and            stated
                                                                                                               low rocky
                                                                                                               shores
                                                                                                               searched


                        Golik and                1. Evaluate the quan-                Standing                 6 beaches;             Monthly           Counted all litter
                        Gertner (1990)           tity of coastal litter,              stock                    5-8 random                               greater than 2 cm;
                                                 2. determine the relation-                                    transects;                               beaches differ in
                                                 ship between beach                                            each transect                            morphology, substrate,
                                                 morphology or use                                             5 m wide,                                and use
                                                 and litter, 3. identify                                       length from
                                                 litter as landbased or                                        water line to
                                                 sea-based                                                     back of beach
                                                                                                               (start of
                                                                                                               vegetation)

                        Center for               Characterize debris on               Accumulation             Beaches                Yearly            Volunteer program,
                        Environmental            beaches                              rate                     along Texas            (some had         return of data cards
                        Education                                                                              shore                  additional        is voluntary
                        (1988)                                                                                                        cleanups)

                        Cundell (1973)           Determine whether                    Accumulation             I beach                Once              Beach selected
                                                 debris on beaches is                 rate of                                                           due to location at
                                                 marine-based or                      plastics                                                          entrance of bay and
                                                 landbased                                                                                              its northerly aspect







                 44        NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                                                                                  Table 7 (continued)

                                                                                                             Sampling

                    Reference                     Purpose                   Variable                   Unit             Interval                    Notes


                    Dixon and             Monitor discarded                 Accumulation           3 sectors            Periods          Variable beach
                    Cooke(1977)           plastic containers in             rate                   (1.6 km ea.)         of on-           types, high fre-
                                          the marine environment                                   of shoreline         shore            quency of onshore
                                                                                                   with N/S             winds            winds, lack of
                                                                                                   orientation                           human disturbance
                                                                                                                                         during winter months,
                                                                                                                                         in close proximity to
                                                                                                                                         Straits of Dover


                    Slip and Burton       Identify types and ori-           Standing               Entire coast-        Once             First survey-litter
                    (1990)                gins of litter on beaches         stock                  line (94 km) of                       removed, wooden
                                                                                                   Macquarie                             objects not included
                                                                                                   Island                                owing to presence
                                                                                                                                         of old shipwrecks and
                                                                                                                                         past sealing activities

                    Caulton and           Monitor maritime litter           Standing               300 m length         Systematic;      Surveyed just after
                    Mocogni (1987)                                          stock                  of beach             weekly           high tide; heavy
                                                                                                   divided into         for 6            recreational use
                                                                                                   three 100 rn         months
                                                                                                   areas; 5
                                                                                                   parallel-strip
                                                                                                   transects, 1 m
                                                                                                   wide at 5 m
                                                                                                   intervals for
                                                                                                   each area


                    Wong et al.           Baseline measurements             Not stated             Selected             Annual
                    (1976)                of pollution in marine                                   stretches of
                                          environment                                              beach to
                                                                                                   collect plastic

                    Scott                 Determine whether                 Standing               2 areas              100 yds          Used inaccessible
                    (1972,1975)           plastic debris was land-          stock                  (1 -100 yds,         once;50          stretches of rocky
                                          based or marine-based                                    1-50 yds)            yds twice        shore
                                                                                                                        (3 years
                                                                                                                        apart)

                    Wilber (1987)         Monitor amount of                 Standing               30 cm X              Not
                                          plastic in marine                 stock                  30 cm                stated
                                          environment                                              quadrats

                    Gregory (1977,        Monitor amount of                 Standing               I-m-wide             Not
                    1978, a and b,        plastic pellets on                stock                  transects            stated
                    1983)                 beaches                                                  along high
                                                                                                   tide line


                    Shiber                Monitor amount of                 Standing               Hand                 Not
                    (1979,1982)           plastic pellets on                stock                  collections          stated
                                          beaches                                                  on multiple
                                                                                                   beaches



                 sized very large debris, especially trawl web, which                              terested in plastic containers (large debris), sub- sam-
                 would be difficult to subsample in transects. FAO                                 pling was used along with surveys of the high tide
                 (1989), however, was interested in medium and large                               line for plastic containers. Differences in the designs
                 debris; thus, subsampling was used. Because the Tidy                              are numerous; Merrell (1985) emphasized the actual
                 Britain Group (see Case Studies, this chapter) was in-                            field work, FAO (1989) gave more guidance as to sta-






                                                                                                    CHAPTER 4: Beach Surveysfor SmaU to Large Debris Items                        45



                                                                                               Table 8
                                             Outline of three field surveys for trend assessment of small to large beach debris items.


                                           Alaska                                   Mediterranean                                         North Sea
                                       (Merrell 1985)                             Sea (FAO 1989)                             (Tidy Britain Group Case Study)

                      Total number of beaches to survey not             At least 2 beaches that differ in      Study site chosen according to following characteristics:
                      indicated; each beach should be as far            morphology, sedimentology,               9 Typical examples of open coastal locations or relation
                      as possible from urban areas; each beach          and type of use. Beaches should        to semi-enclosed or oceanic water masses.
                      should have at least I km of similar              not be regularly cleaned.                * Presence of sandy beaches with shallow slope, well-
                      substrate and slope. Beaches should                                                      defined backshore zone, and accumulated debris.
                      have moderate-to-steep slope, sand or                                                      * Surface currents that run toward or parallel to the
                      gravel substrate, and be exposed to the                                                  study site.
                      open ocean. Beaches should have                                                            - Situated in close proximity to major shipping routes
                      accumulated debris present.                                                              or fishing grounds or both.

                                                                                                               Within the area of the population of interest, a minimum
                                                                                                               of 40 sampling units (beaches) chosen in the following
                                                                                                               way:

                                                                                                                 * Divide the area of the population of interest into at
                                                                                                               least 8 subareas that contain beaches with the required
                                                                                                               characteristics; the 8 subareas should be distributed
                                                                                                               throughout the area of the population of interest.
                                                                                                                 e Within each subarea, identify all potential beaches
                                                                                                               from maps. Delete beaches that are inaccessible and that
                                                                                                               have major sources of obviously land-generated debris
                                                                                                               (camping, bathing areas).
                                                                                                                 - Randomly select 5 beaches from all the potential
                                                                                                               beaches.

                      1 km of beach surveyed from water's               Per beach: At least 4 transects        Per beach: Identify and photograph permanent features.
                      edge to seaward limit of terrestrial              of 5-m width; each transect            Three transects of 5-m randomly chosen. Length of
                      vegetation at the upper limit of normal           randomly chosen. Length of             transect: low water line to high water marks plus 30-m into
                      high tides. Beach permanently marked              transect: low water line to back       the foredunes of the backshore zone when present. Walk
                      and photographed.                                 end of the beach.                      I km parallel to strandline, tabulate all containers, and
                                                                                                               collect representative specimens.
                      Standing stock (#/km).                            Standing stock (# or weight/           Standing stock (g/ml). Per transect: Tabulate and weigh
                      Count all items greater than 5 mm in              meter). Collect and weigh all          all materials <15 kg, excluding timber or driftwood. Age
                      size; tabulate and estimate weights of            visible persistent litter greater      and note geographical origin and original contents of
                      partially buried net fragments.                   than 1-2 cm.                           all containers. Note the distribution of containers along
                                                                                                               the transect line.

                      Sampling frequency not                            Sampling frequency: at least           Sampling frequency: Between October and April during
                      stated.                                           monthly.                               or after spells of persistent onshore winds (>96 h) with
                                                                                                               velocities >8 m/s.

                      Each item is listed.                              Nine categories used.                  Each item listed.
                      Recommended log form.                             Recommended log form.                  Recommended log form.



                  tistical details, and the Tidy Britain                Group gave ex-                    Baseline surveys with the objective of estimating
                  treme detail in choosing beaches.                     The studies of                   the amount of total debris on the beaches of a geo-
                  Merrell (1985) and the Tidy Britain Group are dis-                                     graphical area at a particular time pose a classical
                  cussed further in the Case Studies                    portion of this                  sampling problem. With this objective, a new set of
                  chapter.                                                                               beaches to sample that fit the conditions listed previ-
                      The framework proposed by Ribic and Johnson                                        ously should be randomly chosen each time a survey
                  (1990) for developing beach survey sampling designs                                    is made. The sample size estimation (i.e., number of
                  is recommended with some modifications to address                                      beaches to survey) is based on equations taking into
                  baseline and trend assessment studies (Table 9). This                                  account spatial correlation (correlation between
                  suggested framework can be used for any type of ma-                                    beaches). More complicated approaches are available
                  rine debris. Design differences are due to variable                                    that take into account time and space correlations
                  study objectives.                                                                      (Gilbert 1987).







                46         NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual



                                                                                        Table 9
                                                    Framework detailing alternative sampling design for beach surveys.


                   Study design
                   component                                                 Baseline                                             Trend assessment
                   Objective                        Estimate the amount of debris on the beaches of a             Estimate the trend in the amount of marine-
                                                    specified geographical area during a specified time.          based debris on beaches of a specified area
                                                                                                                  during a specified time period as an indicator
                                                                                                                  of oceanic trends.


                   Variable                         Standing stock (mean #/km)                                    Accumulation rate (#, weight/time interval) or
                                                                                                                  standing stock (#/km)

                   Sampling un it                   Beach                                                         Beach

                   Field design                     Stratified random sampling of beaches:                        Random choice of indicator beaches:
                                                                                                                  To ensure geographic representation, follow a
                                                      Beaches: Appropriate beach topography and                   "stratified" approach (Dixon and Dixon 1981;
                                                    morphology, no access restrictions.                           Ribic 1991.)
                                                    * Stratify on amount of debris on the beaches (low,
                                                    medium, high)                                                 * Indicator beaches: accumulators of large
                                                    e Number of beaches dependent on variability                  amounts of marine-based debris, no access
                                                    of debris on beaches, specified precision of estimate,        restrictions, appropriate beach topography and
                                                    correlation between beaches.                                  morphology.
                                                      Cost of survey built into some sample size equations.       - Number of beaches and sampling interval
                                                                                                                  depend on detection of specified change over
                                                                                                                  time periods using specified model, also
                                                                                                                  influenced by resource allocation.

                                                                                             Without                        with                  Without
                                                         With subsampling                  subsampling                   subsampling            subsampling
                                                              of beach                       of beach                     of beach                of beach

                                                    FAO (1989):                  Merrell (1985):                  Golik (1982):             Clean entire beach
                                                    e At least 4 randomly        9 Count all debris on entire     Systematically placed
                                                    placed transecLs per         beach from water's edge to       transects: 100-m in
                                                    beach.                       mean high tide line.             length, from water's
                                                    * Each transect 5-m in                                        edge to mean high tide
                                                    width, length is from        Tidy Britain Group Case          line, cleaned of all
                                                    water's edge to mean         Study:                           debris.
                                                    high tide.                   * Count all debris on entire
                                                                                 beach from water's edge to
                                                                                 30-m into vegetation.


                                                    Alternative:
                                                    Gregory (1978a): Sample
                                                    high tide line; transects:
                                                    3-m width, 25-m length
                                                       Measure variable of choice (e.g., counts, weights)            Resurvey at established time periods; clean
                                                                                                                         each time; count and weight chosen
                                                       Estimate mean, variance, and confidence intervals                 marine-based debris, age containers
                                                                        for standing stock
                                                                                                                              Look at changes over time
                                                           Generalize to specific geographical area for
                                                                       specified time frame                                Generalize to oceanic conditions




                   Common survey sampling techniques like stratifi-                             having low, medium,          -_ or high amounts of debris. The
                cation (Gilbert 1987) can be used to obtain more                                number of sampling units to survey from each of
                precise debris estimates. For example, beaches that                             these categories could be based on the proportion of
                have the characteristics defined earlier in this chap-                          beaches falling into each of the categories. A discus-
                ter (Historical Information) could be classified as                             sion of the usefulness of stratification can be found






                                                                            ULAITER 4: Beach Surveysfor SmaU to Large Debris Iterm        47

              in Gilbert (1987). In addition, differences in beach              four quarterly surveys will not equal the amount
              lengths can be accounted for using probability pro-               found during one annual survey. This is because the
              portional to length of the beach in the choice of                 amount of debris found on the beach at any one time
              survey units. -                                                   is the result of the dynamic process of beach deposi-
                With trend assessment, individual beaches are                   tion, burial, and loss (e.g., a piece of debris washed
              monitored over time. Sample frequency per beach                   up on the beach in April may or may not be on the
              will be high, particularly if a time series approach is           beach in September).
              taken (Ribic 1991). The effects of environmental                    For baseline studies, confidence intervals can be
              variables (such as wind, tide, etc.) can be controlled            used for comparisons between areas and years. Data
              through selection of candidate beaches and sampling               are commonly summarized with pie charts and histo-
              period. The actual beaches that would be followed                 grams of debris types. For studies where sampling
              over time would be chosen randomly from the group                 units are randomly chosen, hypotheses can be tested
              of candidate beaches. Accumulation rate is the more               with a variety of nonparametric and parametric tests.
              important variable of interest, though, of course,                  Properly planned trend assessment studies can be
              standing stock can be measured. For medium to very                analyzed in a time-series framework. Lettenmaier
              large debris surveys, all debris items can be counted             (1978) suggested that monthly samples taken for 5
              or, alternatively, the survey may focus on certain indi-          years will give a minimum sample size for time-series
              cator items. If vessel-source debris is of interest, care         analysis. All the assumptions behind this approach
              must be taken to determine any landbased fraction of              will have to be checked (Brockwell'and Davis 1989).
              such debris. An important difference between sam-                 An alternative to time-series analysis is the nonpara-
              pling large debris and small debris is the use of                 metric analysis for trend (Hirsch et al. 1982; Gilbert
              subsampling; typically, there is too much small and               1987). However, for a short time series (on the order
              medium debris to count or collect in any reasonable               of 5 years), these techniques may have low power
              amount of time.                                                   (Hirsch and Slack 1984). Another alternative is to
                                                                                use a within-subjects analysis of variance model
                                                                                (Keppel 1982) where beaches are the "subjects" and
              Analytical Procedures                                             the time period when measurements were taken are
                                                                                the "treatments." Various adjustments can be made
              Caution must be used in comparing sites if standard-              for violations of the typical analysis of variance as-
              ized field techniques are not used. Debris                        sumptions (Keppel 1982). This is basically the
              accumulation rate and standing stock measurements                 alternative considered by Ribic and Johnson (1990)
              are not comparable; that is, if one study measures the            although they use a randomized block in time design
              accumulation rate and another measures standing                   where beaches were blocks. The simplest approach-
              stock, then the two sites cannot be compared. If plas-            a "before and after" comparison of specific
              tic containers are used as indicators of vessel-source            beaches-is also possible (see     Case Study: The Tidy
              debris, analysis of container ages may directly mea-              Britain Group, this chapter). Because of the potential
              sure accumulation rate in the marine environment,                 complications in the analysis of trend assessment
              avoiding the problems of comparing indirect beach-                data, a statistician should be involved from the onset
              based measures.                                                   of planning the study through the analysis stage.
                To compare accumulation rates between different
              studies, the sampling frequency must be the same.
              For example, if one study measures accumulation                   Case Studies
              rate for 3 months and another for 6 months, the re-
              sults are not comparable. In order to compare the                   Two case studies are presented to demonstrate the
              sites, the rates have to be put on the same time scale            different ways the marine debris problem can be
              (e.g., the amount of debris per month). This makes                studied. In both cases, concerns about aesthetics ini-
              the assumption that the rate of accumulation within               tiated the work. The field survey designs were
              the sampling interval is uniform in all the studies               influenced by geographical variables and the major
              (this assumption may not be justified).                           debris items found in areas. Both studies standard-
                In measuring both the accumulation rate and                     ized sampling protocols early on and continued to
              standing stock, it is inappropriate to add together the           follow basic protocols throughout the studies. Finally,
              amounts of debris found at a site during several sam-             both studies have changed and refined their objec-
              pling efforts at short intervals to determine total               tives as more was learned about their particular
              amount of debris over a longer time interval. As an               problems and as control measures (e.g., MARPOL
              example, the sum of all debris found during each of               Annex V) were implemented.







                48        NOAA Technical Report NMFS, 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                                                                                     Table 10
                                                             Outline and chronology for Alaska beach surveys.


                    1972-1974           Surveys started at Amchitka Island during course of an unrelated project
                                        Predominant debris was related to fishing industry
                                        Standardized methodology established (outlined in Table 8)
                                        Standing stock primary variable

                    1974-1980s          Decrease in fishing effort off Alaska

                    1982                Original Amchitka Island beaches resurveyed to assess prediction of decrease in amount of debris on Amchitka
                                           Island
                                        Focus on debris related to fishing industry
                                        Standing stock primary variable

                    Early 1980s         Entanglement in fishing gear identified as possible causes of northern fur seal decline

                    1984                Seven islands in southeastern Alaska surveyed for entangling debris; prediction is that there is less fishing in
                                           southeastern Alaska and, therefore, there should be less debris
                                        Standing stock primary variable

                    1985                Sampling design emphasizes entangling debris
                                        Two islands of original seven in southeastern Alaska the focus
                                        Aleutian Islands (including Amchitka Island) surveyed

                                        Standing stock still primary variable
                                        Design modified to assess accumulation rate
                                        Beach dynamics of plastic debris investigated


                    1986                Focus on two islands in southeastern Alaska
                                        Standing stock and accumulation rate being measured on different beaches
                                        Beach dynamics--emphasis on trawl web

                    Mid-1980s           Education efforts begun to discourage disposal of fishing nets in North Pacific


                    1989                Two islands in southeastern Alaska the focus
                                           First island: surveyed twice, accumulation rate measured
                                           Second island: surveyed annually, standing stock measured

                                        Emphasis on trawl web dynamics on second island to assess impact of MARPOL Annex V


                                        XIAUOL Annex V enters into force 31 December 1988



                Alaska Beach Surveys                                                         Gulf of Alaska, the other the Bering Sea) away from
                                                                                             major sources of landbased debris. Most debris
                Alaska beach surveys of marine debris are being done                         proved to be vessel-source (e.g., fishing nets, floats,
                by researchers within the National Marine Fisheries                          cargo-related ropes, strapping bands). In the absence
                Service. The chronology of the Alaska beach survey                           of a standard survey methodology, Merrell developed
                studies is presented in Table 10. The following infor-                       an approach that is still appropriate to this day (see
                mation was derived from Merrell (1980, 1984, 1985),                          Table 8 and Merrell 1985). The sampling unit was an
                Merrell and Johnson (1987), Johnson (1988; 1989;                             entire beach because the beaches on Amchitka Island
                1990, a and b), andjohnson and Merrell (1988).                               are relatively small and discrete (i.e., bounded by
                    The initial work on beach surveys in 1972 was                            rocky headlands.
                started by Theodore Merrell (NOAA, National                       Ma-          In 1984, a temporary shift was made to sample
                rine Fisheries Service, Auke Bay, AK) on Amchitka                            southeast Alaska beaches. Merrell (1985) did not pro-
                Island in the western Aleutian Islands of Alaska. This                       vide the rationale for selecting those beaches;
                work was started as an opportunistic study during                            however, they were generally known to collect debris.
                Merrell's stay on the island for another project. The                        Because many outer coast beaches in southeast
                choice was fortuitous because Amchitka Island is situ-                       Alaska are steep bedrock and not suitable for debris
                ated in the North Pacific Ocean (one side facing the                         surveys, the selected southeast Alaska survey beaches






                                                                             CILIPTER 4: Beach Surveysfor Small to Large Debris Item        49

              were among the few beaches with suitable substrate,                 ways of handling debris and -waste. This has been
              slope, and access characteristics (S. Johnson, National             achieved by a series of educational and public in-
              Marine Fisheries Service, Auke Bay Laboratory, AK,                  volvement programs directed toward the entire
              pers. commun. April 1991). In 1985, the emphasis                    community. A chronology of the beach survey studies
              shifted to entanglement debris (fishing nets and strap-             undertaken by the Tidy Britain Group is presented in
              ping bands) as concern increased about the impact of                Table 11.
              entanglement of marine animals in such debris. In                   I The Tidy Britain Group supports a Marine Litter
              1985, focus on trawl web started and, in 1989, the re-              Research Program as an integral part of its approach
              searchers shifted their studies to use trawl web as an              towards litter abatement. The Program was estab-
              indicator of the impact of MARPOL Annex V.                          lished in 1973 in response to numerous complaints
                Thus, there has been a change in measurement                      about increasing quantities of all types of litter on the
              variables as the survey has evolved. Standing stock                 United Kingdom's beaches, frequent reports of inju-
              (both type and and amount of debris) was of initial                 ries sustained by bathers owing to encounters with
              interest. Beach dynamics of debris (primarily trawl                 broken glass and sharp pieces of metal, and general
              web) and measurements of accumulation rates have                    dissatisfaction with declining aesthetic conditions of
              become increasingly important. Studies of the move-                 primary bathing beaches.
              ment and fate of trawl web and other plastics have-
              been conducted by mark-recapture studies. Tagging
              or removal of trawl web from the beaches is now rou-                The Development of Beach Survey Techniques and
              tine, as is the removal of rope, gillnets, and strapping            Analytical Methods for the Surveillance of Marine
              (S. Johnson, National Marine Fisheries Service, Auke                Litter-In the early 1970s, few references in the lit-
              Bay Laboratory, AK, pers. commun. April 1991). In                   erature described systematic studies of marine litter.
              terms of sizes of debris, the surveys emphasized large              Consequently, the research program first sought to
              and very large debris.                                              develop suitable beach survey techniques and analyti-
                During this series of surveys, objectives have been               cal methods. Preliminary observations at several
              refined and the sampling design, field measure-                     locations around the United Kingdom coastline sug-
              ments, and data analyses altered accordingly. Despite               gested that glass, paperboard, metal, and plastic
              refinements, however, the basic field methodology                   containers were the main components of marine lit-
              has remained unchanged. The data collection by one                  ter. Plastic containers were therefore selected as the
              person and his training of other surveyors reduced                  debris type of primary interest. The initial studies
              the problems of inter-observer variability and helped               had the following objectives:
              insure continuity between studies. This will make                   0  De Itermine the main kinds of containers and their
              comparisons between previous surveys valid. The in-                    relative abundance;
              terest in a specific type of debris-entangling                      0  identify the range of geographical origins;
              debris-is also a strong point because of the way this               0  quantify container retention rates on different
              interest was used to focus the research.                               beach types; and
                                                                                  0  assess the persistence of plastic debris in the ma-
              The Tidy Britain Group                                                 rine environment.
                                                                                   The initial observations were undertaken on a 4.8-
              The following study is based on Dixon and Cooke                     kin stretch of Dover Strait coastline. This was chosen
              (1977), Dixon and Dixon (1980, 1981a; 1983), and                    as a long-term reference area because it included a
              Dixon and Hawksley (1980).                                          variety of beach types, had a relatively high frequency
                The Tidy Britain Group is the United Kingdom's                    of onshore winds during all seasons, was in close
              national litter abatement agency. It has a broad mem-               proximity to major shipping lanes, and recreational
              bership including national and local governmental                   boats operated offshore throughout the year. In addi-
              agencies, industry, commerce, and voluntary organi-                 tion, there was evidence of litter originating from
              zations. The Group functions primarily as an advisory               landbased sources, including beach users, sewage
              body, but also offers a wide range of practical pro-                outfalls, rivers, and a nearby coastal landfill site.
              grams dealing with litter problems on land, or more                  Use of Containers as Indicators-The observations in
              recently, at sea.                                                   the reference area suggested that plastic containers
                The Group's approach to deal with litter problems                 were the most common type of debris. They were
              involves tackling two main causes: first, the attitudes             deposited along high tide lines at a rate up to 80 km-1
              and behavior of people towards littering and the en-                day-', and were therefore suitable indicators, identify-
              vironment; and second, the correct and incorrect                    ing the major sources and subsequent movements of






              50        NOAA Technical Report NNOS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                                                                           Table 11
                                                          Chronology for Tidy Britain Group surveys.


                  1973-1977         Marine Litter Research Programme established in response to apparent increasing quantities of litter on the United
                                       Kingdom's beaches

                                    Purpose-Generate systematic data showing qualitatively and quantitatively the nature and scope of the problem

                                    Primary components of marine debris identified as containers

                                    Single sampling unit chosen as a long-term reference area; it consists of varying beach types, high frequency of
                                       onshore winds during all seasons, known high density of shipping operating offshore; also accumulates landbased
                                       debris


                                    Containers collected, contents, ages, and manufacturers identified

                                    Retention rates assessed, beach dynamic studies undertaken with mark-recapture experiments

                  1978-1980         Population of interest redefined to a large area; to assess large-scale trends, survey design further developed and
                                       reassessed to identify limitations (outlined in Table 8)

                                    MARPOL Annex V becoming an issue

                                    Field sampling design changed to include the following:
                                       ï¿½ single subsample per site
                                       ï¿½ increased container samples
                                       ï¿½ distribution of containers on beach omitted


                  1980 on           New program to assess impact of MARPOL Annex V

                                    Two studies developed:
                                    I .Source-specific beach debris surveys to detect changes in at-sea waste disposal due to MARPOL Annex V; arranged
                                       surveys as "before" and "after" entry into force of the Annex at same sampling units and times of year:
                                       - Emphasis on plastic containers (geographical origin, ages, original contents)
                                       - 185 sampling units (not all fulfill previous substrate requirements)
                                    2. Assessments of the provision and use of reception facilities in ports and marinas for disposal of ships' garbage
                                       ashore.


                  1988              MARPOL Annex V enters into force on 31 December




              vessel-source debris. Consequently, technical support                 posited by the wind. Glass and metal items, in con-
              networks previously established with packaging and                    trast, were more likely to become buried "in situ," in
              product manufacturers, especially plastic bottle mak-                 close proximity to high tide lines, and later exposed
              ers, were considerably extended on a global basis. A                  by wave action. All types of litter were found mixed
              detailed database was compiled for the most fre-                      with algal materials. Longshore movements by wind,
              quently observed containers, incorporating data on                    currents, and wave action were also evident, often
              packaging histories. The data base continues to be                    causing litter to be washed from beaches, transported
              updated regularly.                                                    seawards, and deposited elsewhere.
                 Beach Type and Litter Assessments-Given the                          Optimum Sampling Period and Frequency-An opti-
              marked relationship between beach form and reten-                     mum sampling period was apparent for assessing
              tion rates of containers found in the reference area,                 litter originating from sources other than beach us          '-
              sandy beaches were identified for more detailed ob-                   ers. This period was during or immediately after
              servations. Further mark-recapture studies were                       spells of persistent onshore winds (>96 h), with ve-
              undertaken, providing a clear understanding of the                    locities >8 m s-1, between October and April. Tidal
              processes by which materials were removed from the                    stage did not affect this optimum sampling period.
              beaches and later deposited elsewhere. Containers                     Daily inspections of foreshore high tide lines and
              and other types of plastic litter were often recovered                backshore zones enabled collection of accurate data
              from the backshore zone, where they had been de-                      on the types and quantities of deposited litter.






                                                                               CHAPTER 4: Beach Surveysfor Smail to Large Debris Items         51
                 In contrast, assessments during the remainder of                   *  the presence of sandy beaches, with shallowly in-
                the year, particularly during or at the end of the bath-               clined beach face gradients and well-defined
                ing season, generally identified a small residual                      backshore zones, on which marine debris was
                proportion of litter deposited earlier. This was com-                  known to accumulate in the short term
                posed largely of plastics mixed with the more recent                0  exposure to surface currents running towards or
                discards of beach users.                                               parallel with the coastline, and the relatively high
                                                                                       frequencies of onshore winds, favoring the strand-
                Large-Scale Beach Litter Surveys on the Shores of the                  ing of debris
                English Channel, North Sea, and North Atlantic                      0  close proximity to major shipping routes or fish-
                Ocean-Between August 1978 and July 1980, new                           ing grounds or both
                sampling units were chosen from the beaches of                       Careful consideration was given to the spatial dis-
                Cherbourg Peninsula, France, west Jutland in Den-                   tribution of the sampling units throughout the
                mark, Portugal, and the Western Isles of Scotland. A                population of interest. However, from a practical
                total of 170 sampling units were examined.                          viewpoint, the duration of each survey was largely de-
                 The goals of this expanded program of beach litter                 termined by the level of funding available.
                surveys were as follows:                                            Therefore, it was decided that a minimum of 40 sam-
                e  Assess large-scale trends in the composition, geo-               pling units should be examined with a team of
                   graphical origin, distribution, and persistence of               between two and four observers. A method of multi-
                   marine debris in the coastal and oceanic waters of               stage stratified random sampling was employed in
                   western Europe; and                                              selecting the sampling units. The selection process is
                0  develop a standardized method for assessing ves-                 detailed in Table 8.
                   sel-source debris from beach surveys on the                       On arrival at each sampling unit, permanent fea-
                   shores of different water masses, and subsequently               tures or fixed points were identified on or near the
                   identify any limitations.                                        shoreline and photographed. The locations of
                The survey program sought to produce data of suffi-                 transect lines were fixed using two-digit random
                cient accuracy drawn from a sufficiently large                      numbers (from tables) that represented a linear dis-
                geographical area such that results could alert na-                 tance down the beach from the fixed points.
                tional authorities and intergovernmental organ-                      Each survey on a sampling unit lasted between 14
                izations of the consequences to uncontrolled solid                  and 18 days following spells of onshore winds; two
                waste discharges into the marine environment.                       were completed in March or April, and the remain-
                 Accordingly, specific survey objectives were as fol-               der in July or August. In the case of the latter surveys,
                lows:                                                               sites where substantial numbers of beach users were
                                                                                    likely to congregate were avoided.
                ï¿½  Identify the major sources and relative distribu-                 At each sampling unit, subsampling was done using
                   tions of marine debris in the semi-enclosed and                  three 5-m strip transects established at right angles to
                   open ocean waters of western Europe;                             the shore using measuring tapes and markers. Each
                ï¿½  assess the persistence of plastics and other types               transect extended from the water line across the fore-
                   of solid wastes in these waters;                                 shore to include all visible high tide marks, and an
                ï¿½  document the environmental impacts of marine                     additional distance of up to 30 in into the foredunes
                   debris;                                                          of the backshore zone, when present.
                ï¿½  adapt the methodologies and techniques devel-                     The following data were recorded within each
                   oped in earlier pilot studies for use on a larger                transect.
                   scale;                                                           0  total wet weights of the main fabrication materials
                ï¿½  determine the most appropriate statistical meth-                    and the density of all litter in each foreshore
                   ods for analyzing data from large-scale beach                       transect, excluding items >15 kg, and timber or
                   debris surveys; and                                                 driftwood
                ï¿½  improve as possible the survey design including                  0  frequency, fabrication materials, geographical ori-
                   spatial sampling considerations.                                    gins, ages, and original contents of containers*
                 To achieve these objectives, the sampling units                    0  the distribution of containers within the transects
                were selected on the basis of the following biophysi-               *  the distribution of plastic fragments -by their pres-
                cal and anthropogenic factors.                                         ence or absence in I in' plots along the transect
                   their relative geographical positions on the shores                 line
                   of , semi-enclosed and oceanic water masses, as                   More extensive searches beyond the transect
                   typical examples of open coastal locations                       boundaries were employed to collect samples of con-







             52      NOAA Technical Report NWS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual

             tainers for dating. For this purpose, at each sampling         0  Generate statistics to detect any major reductions
             unit two to four observers walked along the foreshore             in the overall quantities or types of litter, notably
             parallel to high tide lines for a distance of up to I             plastics;
             km. All containers were examined and samples col-              0  detect changes in at-sea disposal practices from a
             lected. The procedure was then repeated in the                    detailed study of the container proportion of
             foredunes of the backshore zone of each site.                     beach litter; and
                                                                            0  relate the data obtained in the first two objectives
             The Use of Large-scale Litter Surveys in Programs                 to trends in the availability on use of port recep-
             Designed to Assess the Effectiveness of XLARPOL An-               tion facilities.
             nex V-In anticipation of the expected entry into
             force of MARPOL Annex V by the mid-1980s, the                    The debris in the respective water masses around
             program strategy was revised. In order of priority, the        the coastline of the United Kingdom was the popula-
             new program strategy had the following objectives.             tion of interest. One-hundred eighty-five sampling
                                                                            units were chosen using a multi-stage stratified ran-
             ï¿½  assist in implementing the Annex by raising pub-            dom sampling scheme.
                lic awareness of the need to protect the marine             Northeast Atlantic Ocean       66 sampling units in
                environment;
             ï¿½  evaluate the effectiveness of the various regula-                                          the Western Isles of
                tory and other measures designed to reduce                                                 Scotland and Cornwall
                garbage discharge at sea;                                   Irish Sea                      22 sampling units in
             ï¿½  determine the types and amounts of marine litter                                           Cardigan Bay
                entering the marine environment from sources                North Sea                      65 sampling units in
                other than ships' discharges.                                                              northeast Scotland,
                                                                                                           Cleveland, Yorkshire,
               At the planning stage of this    new program, it was                                        Humberside, and
             recognized that at least two complementary data sets                                          Norfolk
             were necessary to fulfill the revised objectives: First,       English Channel                32 sampling units on
             data documenting the availability and use of recep-                                           the Isle of Wight
             tion facilities in ports and marinas for the disposal            The timing and duration      of surveys at each sam-
             ashore of shipboard generated wastes, notably plas-            pling unit used the procedures described earlier. The
             tics; second, beach survey data of specific debris types       baseline surveys (i.e., before MARPOL Annex V en-
             organized in an appropriate time series to document            tered into force) were undertaken between 1980 and
             improved waste disposal practices at sea.                      1987, usually in March or April, following spells of
               In order for a port and marina reception facilities          onshore winds and before the commencement of
             study (which is presently underway) to be supported,           regular summer beach cleaning operations.
             a national beach litter survey commenced in 1980.                The survey methods were the same as those de-
             The aim was to identify any significant long-term              scribed previously, with the following exceptions:
             changes in the quantities and types of beach litter            0  Total debris wei ht and that of each of the main
             originating from ships' discharges on varying geo-                                 9
             graphical scales.                                                 items were derived from a single transect at each
               Determining the most suitable spatial sampling de-              site, and
             sign was necessary at the outset for comparative               *  observations relating to the distributions of con-
             purposes. A number of different approaches were                   tainers and other types of debris across beach
             considered; for example, "before" and "after" surveys             faces were omitted.
             organized separately using different sampling units            These minor adjustments were made to increase the
             (where "before" and "after" refers to the date                 number of sampling units that could be surveyed and
             MARPOL Annex V went into effect).                              to ensure the optimum use of resources.
               An alternative approach that was chosen was the                Data on debris weight within transects will be ana-
             use of paired observations, "before" and "after," on           lyzed by comparisons of means (before and after
             the same sampling units. This sampling design would            MARPOL Annex V entered into force), with particu-
             control for influences from variables such as beach            lar reference to plastic debris categories, and com-
             type or topography, hydrographic features of water             parisons of spatial distributions and associated rela-
             masses, and different amenity values of sampling               tive weight differences will be evaluated based on
             units. Consequently, the following specific survey ob-         data collected before and after MARPOL Annex V
             jectives were identified on regional and national              entered into force. The major parameters used in
             geographical scales:                                           comparing the container data are listed below.






                                                                            CHAPTER 4: Beach Surveysfor Small to Large Debris Items        53
              0  ori ginal contents classifications, the common                 hazardous materials, which are being found in in-
                 products in the baseline surveys being typical of              creasing quantities on beaches.
                 those used on ships                                              Over the next 3 years, inputs of debris to the ma-
              0  geographical origins, with particular reference to             rine environment from nonship sources will be
                 changes in the relative proportions of samples                 examined in more detail. Particular attention will be
                 that are foreign in origin                                     given to landbased debris, such as sewage items, and
              0  age classes, with an emphasis on changes in distri-            the development of suitable methodologies for mea-
                 butions following the entry into force of                      suring riverine discharges of debris to the marine
                 MARPOL Annex V                                                 environment. In addition, joint studies with local au-
              0  varying combinations of the above, analyzed re-                thorities and other interested groups will examine
                 gionally and nationally                                        the most effective means of preventing beach users
                                                                                from discarding debris.
                The remaining non-container debris observed              in
              transects will be compared on the basis of frequen-               Summary
              cies of occurrence for each type, notably fishing gear
              debris. The "after" surveys (surveys made after                       There are two types of objectives commonly en-
              MARPOL Annex V entered into force) will be com-                       countered in beach surveys: 1) baseline (studies
              pleted over the next 5 years, and the results                         documenting types and amount of debris on
              published periodically on a survey-by-survey basis                    beaches); and 2) trend assessment (long-term
              followed by a national review. Reports will be sub-                   studies to detect changes in overall amounts of
              mitted to the appropriate regulatory authori-                         specific debris types).
              ties, governmental departments, and the shipping                      Different survey designs are necessary to address
              industry.                                                             the two objectives. Remote sites are ideal for trend
                No major difficulties have been encountered to                      assessment of vessel-source debris because the
              date in the organization of surveys or subsequent                     source of debris is readily identified as vessel-
              analysis of data. However, in numerous instances,                     source.
              ideal beaches have not been located and, therefore,                   Baseline studies with multi-source debris must be
              other beaches, primarily sand backed by shingle,                      able to discriminate between landbased and ves-
              cobbles, rocks, and cliffs, have been used. In identify-              sel-source debris. Beaches meeting basic criteria
              ing long-term trends, allowances have been made for                   should be randomly chosen each time a survey is
              changes in the patterns and densities of offshore                     made if the focus is on the beach rather than the
              shipping operations.                                                  beach as an indicator of oceanic conditions.
                Following the broad guidelines contained in the                     Trends in oceanic conditions are best assessed by
              revised beach survey program, the future work pro-                    using indicator beaches of interest and measuring
              gram will focus primarily upon compliance                             the same beaches over time. The indicator
              monitoring in connection with MARPOL 73/78 An-                        beaches are randomly chosen from a list of
              nexes III and V, and assessing inputs of debris into                  beaches meeting basic criteria. Indicator items,
              the marine environment from sources other than                        such as plastic containers or sewage items, can be
              ships. As noted above, an examination of the effi-                    used to assess accumulation rates and long-term
              ciency and availability of port reception facilities for              trends in occurrence.
              ships' garbage is already underway, and findings                      Well-conceived field sampling designs are impera-
              from the beach surveys will be considered with the                    tive in all cases. Studies with multiple and con-
              port reception facility surveys to facilitate an over-                flicting objectives, if not recognized as such, can
              all appraisal of the effectiveness of the Annex V                     cause design problems.
              regulations.                                                      *   The cost of a beach survey for trend assessment is
                In spring 1991, an extensive study of packaged dan-                 generally low compared to directly assessing ma-
              gerous and hazardous goods recovered on beaches                       rine debris conditions in the open water (at-sea
              commenced. The analysis of the data will generate                     programs).
              statistics concerning the efficacy of ship reporting              0   The two case studies demonstrate different ways
              systems for lost cargoes, changes in substance identi-                of studying the marine debris problem with beach
              fication markings used on packages, and other                         surveys. The case studies illustrate how geography
              aspects of the. regulations contained in MARPOL An-                   and differences in major marine debris types
              nex III and the recently revised IMDG (International                  greatly influenced the study designs.
              Maritime Dangerous goods) Code. Provision will also                   A statistician should be consulted at the onset of
              be made within the survey objectives to compile in-                   survey planning and be involved through the
              formation on medical wastes and other potentially                     completion of the study.









                       Surveyors                                         Location FTI             Beach No.                 Length (m) E-ET-T-1
                                                                                      1 2                     3 4                         S 6 7 8                                  0
                       Transect                 substrate F-I           Slope 0             Month             Day              Year =             Cleared
                                   9 10                       it                12                                  1516             1718                     19
                                                   Fishing Gear                                                        Packaging

                         Trawl web                                                                Bottles
                         Rope                                                           2223      Caps/lids
                         Gillnet floats                                                           Bags
                                                                                        252627
                         open straps                                                                 <lml
                         Closed straps                                                  28           >lm'
                                                                                            31                                                               71 72 73
                         Othd oil containers                                                      cups
                                                                                               3
                         Trawl floats                                                       35 38    Plastic                                                    @=475
                         Crab pot floats                                                    =        Styrofoam                                                                     CD
                                                                                            37 38                                                               76 77              0
                         Buoy bags                                                          =     Bowls/utensils/straws                                                            Cr
                                                                                            9144                                                                718147      00
                         Other floats                                                             Small pails                                                   So
                                                                                            41 4
                         Crab bait containers                                               =     Six-pack yokes
                                                                                            43 44
                         Troll bait containers                                              0     Beverage crates
                                                                                               45                                                               84 85
                         Monofilament gillnet                                                     Styrofoam food
                                                                                            4=7      containers                                                 El
                                                                                            q                                                                   86
                         multifilament gillnet                                                 4  Bulk liqjuid containers
                         Monofilament fishing line                                          E3                                                                  Be 89
                                                                                               49 Styrofoam packaging
                         Fish baskets                                                                                                                           9
                                                                                            so 51 misc.                                                         MY
                         Troll plugs                                                           5                                                                92 9a
                         5-Gal oil containers                                               W                                                                        5]
                                                                                            53 5
                         Chemical ampules                                                   W55 6   NMFS-Plastic Debris Survey Form
                         Loops (Rope, etc.)                                                 0
                                                                                               7
                                                                                            E
                         misc.                                                              5;05                                               Page          of
                                                                                            6061
                                                                                            31
































                                                                                     Appendix Figure A
                                             Data form for beach surveys of debris. National Marine Fisheries Service-plastic debris survey form.















                                                           Personal Effects                                                         Misc. Plastics

                                   Hats/helmets                                                                Visqueen/Plastic sheets

                                   Footwear                                                                       <lm2
                                   Gloves                                                               00 1      >1m,                                                                 11511
                                   Smoking accessories                                                    1    Shotgun wads                                                            M711
                                   Toys                                                                 041    Pipe/tubing                                                             PQ 9
                                   Combs/brushes/eyeglasses                                             =      Fragments/Pellets
                                                                                                        108107                                                                   121122123124
                                   Beach whistles                                                              Gaskets                                                                 P25@
                                   Medical                                                                     Brushes/brooms

                                   Misc.                                                                       Garbage can/lids
                                                                                                        111MI12 Foam/insulation
                                                                                                               Misc.                                                                   PM 19

                                                                                                                                                                                       f33134


                                                                                               CODES

                                   Location                     Beach No.                 Transect (m)                 Substrate                slope                    Cleared

                                   1   Yakutat                  1-99                      i   =  0-100                 1  Sand                  1   LOW                  1   Yes
                                   2   Middleton Is.                                      2   =  1-200                 2  Gravel                2   Moderate             2   No
                                   3   Amchitka Is.                                       3   =  2-300                 3  Boulder               3   Steep                3   Trawl web                        I
                                       Kruzof Is.
                                   4                                                      4   =  3-400                 4  Combination           4                        4
                                   5   Kuiu Is.                                           5   =  4-500                 5                        5                        5
                                   6   Noyes Is.                                          6   =  5-600                                                                   6
                                   7   Suemez Is.                                         7   =  6-700
                                   8   Admiralty     Is.                                  8   =  7-800
                                   9   Lincoln Is.                                        9   =  8-900
                                   10  Ralston Is.                                        10  =  9-1000
                                   11  Kayak Is.                                          11  =  1000-1100
                                   12                                                     12  =  1100-1200
                                   13                                                     13  =  1200-1300
                                   14                                                     14
                                   15                                                     15





                                                                                             Appendix Figure A (continued)
                                                                                                                                                                                       P3 ;11@4
























                                                                                                                                                                                                              W1
                                                                                                                                                                                                              W










                                    NMFS-PLASTIC MEASUREMENT FORM                                                            M 1              4                                                 1    1       1?      1         14  1      16       17       18    19      20
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               z
                                    Surveyors                                        Location [:1:3 B ... h    No. M Length (.j                                 month             Day E= Year E=                 cleared
                                                                                                1 2                          34                 5 6 7 a                    910             1112           1314                 1516           Dead ani Is            7 18
                                                                      Netting                                                Rope
                                                                                     r                                                              Fishing li a lClosed            st     apsl                  Floats                            ch erv   d
                                                                                     0
                                                                                                     0      u                                       m                                                            r
                                                                                     0                   A
                                                                            0        -4                     0                                       4)                        ",    0                         0  0
                                                                                                     D,                                                                                                                                                     Is
                                                                                                                   0                                                                                                                                 0
                                                                                     V             t)                                                                      -Y       0                        -                                       z      :3            Remarks
                                                                                     41e                                                                                            Q                         0  43                                         Id
                                                                            0        mW              V r.   a      0                                                                                          U  0                                          L)
                                                                            ri       0               r 0                     H
                                                      2C                             P. C:           N      9                Q                         J@                  o?                     @0
                                                                                                     @'o 11 '0               i @                    4'
                                    0 ZOI21122123 2425126127 28 2030        1323     35]36]3A38 3940141]4 43 444SI4047I48I49150 S1 52153 Sj55]S65A58 69 8061               62163164 65ISO 67 68 69 70171172 73174 75 76 77 78  9 80 81 82 83 84 85    a     was-9790

                                    2
                                    3
                                    4


                                    190                                                                                            L
                                    11                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         tv
                                    13
                                    14
                                    is-                                                                                      -H- +PV

                                    18                                                               LIL                     - - -
                                    19
                                    20
                                    17                                                                                                                                                                      :LL
                                    16




                                    Location              Position                     Hattina  Type                         Transact iml                                     i-                               Animals (entangled/deA& obseryedl
                                    IYaku :t              I Buried                     1  Trawl web                          10-100       1  y a
                                        t                                                                                                                                  /4:    3        1    Trawl          1     Sao bir                                I  Gunshot
                                    2Hiddl ton Is.        2 Snarled on loge            2  monofilamnt qMnst                  21-200       2  No                            l/     6        2    Spongex        2     Seal/sea lion                          2  Si-pack yoke
                                    3lachitka Is          3 1...                       3  No Itifilament qillnot             32-300       3  Trawl web only                3/8             3    Buoy bag       3     Porpoise                               3  oil
                                                                                                                                                                           2:     20
                                    4K-..f Is.            4 Buried and snarled         4  Cargo net                          43-400          Tr 1 web, gillnet,                   13       4    Solid foam     4     Whale                                  4  Ropelfishinq line
                                                                                                                             5                      ad                                                         r
                                                                                                                                                                                                               ,     Pi
                                    5Kuiu 18,             5                            5                                     4-SOO           clos     trap,  rope          5/::   16       5                         C11h                                   5 Unknowa
                                    6N-ye re              6                            6                                     66-600       5                                3/     19       6                   6        staccan                             6
                                                                                                                                                                           1.,    25                           7     Fish      seabirds
                                    7                                                                                        76-700       6                                14"    32                           a     Fish      a bird. A marine mammals
                                    aAdmi alty in.                                                                           7-200                                         1-                                                  a a  ri
                                      ..r,                                                                                                                                        43 .6    Nation              9     Be.
                                    9Li . n 1::                                        color                                 B-900                                         1:1/2.                                       birds 4 me n. mammals
                                    10 Ralston I            TwiBted/knotted                                                  10                                                                                io    So ott.r
                                                                                                                             19-10000                                      1.3/4
                                    11 Kayak is           2 Br-idd/kott     :d         I  Clnr                               1Z30 -1100                                    2               1    Japan          11    Bird b....
                                    12                    3 Tit'd/kotl               as2  Gr                                 11 11OU                                                       2    u. s'          12    Me= I bones
                                                                                                                             3   0:1200
                                    13                    4 Braidd/k,       tl         3    lack                             2120 1300                                                     3    Russia         13    Fur saal
                                    14                    5 Double     trend           4  B us                               14                                                            4    Poland         14
                                    is                    6 Nylon                      5  Yellow                             is                                                            5    Korea          15
                                                          7 As:orted mash size.        6  Red                                                                                              S    Taiwan
                                    Beach No.                   nd color.              7  orange                                                                                           7    Canada
                                                          8                               whit.
                                    1-99                  9                               B@ wn
                                                                                            ixed
                                                                                                                             1 Act al
                                                          Race                         12                                    2 Estimated                                                                                                              Page             of
                                                          I y
                                                          2 NO
                                                                                     0
                                                                         @3          13..



                                                                                                                                          Appendix Figure B
                                                                 Data form for beach surveys of debris. National Marine Fisheries Service-plastic measurement form.






                                                                                                                   CHAPTER 4: Beach Surveysfor Small to Large Debris Items                                 57


                                                              BEACH CLEANUP DATA CARD

                        Thank you for completing this data card. Answer the questions and return to your area coordinator or to the address at the
                        bottom of this card. This information will be used in the Center for Marine Conservation's National Marine Debris Data Base
                        and Report to help develop solutions to stopping marine debris.

                        Name                                                                Affiliation

                        Address                                       Occupation                                   Phone
                        City                                                          State -Zip - M                                       F -Age:
                        Today's Date: Month: - Day -Year - Name of Coordinator
                        Location of beach cleaned                                                      Nearest city-

                        How did you hear about the cleanup?


                                                                                      SAFETY TIPS
                                                                      I .Do not go near any large drurns.
                                                                      2. Be careful vwith sharp objects.
                                                                      3. Wear gloves.
                                                                      4. Stay out of the dune areas.
                                                                      5. Watch out for snakes.
                                                                      6. Don't fift anything too heavy.
                                                                            WE WANT YOU TO BE SAFE



                        Number of people woriung together on this data card - Estimated distance of beach cleaned                    Number of bags filled

                           SOURCES OF DEBRIS. Please list all items with foreign labels (such as plastic bleach bottles from Me>dco) or other marlmgs that indicate the item's
                           origin (such as cruise line names@ military idendfication or debris with names and/or address of shipping/fteighdng or fishing companies, or oil/gas
                           e)ploration activities).

                                                       SOURCE                                                              rTEM FOUND
                        e--Plw                                                                                     -s-trappim,
                                   A-Mc- -A*teP114q             ComP-4






                        STRANDED AND/OR ENTANGLED ANIMALS (Please describe type of anirnal and type of entangling debris. Be as specific as you can.)








                        What was the most peculiar item you collected?


                        Comments



                        Thank you!                                                                                 PILEASE RE`rURN THIS CARD TO
                                                                                                                   VOUR AREA COORDINATOR
                                                                                                                   OR MAIL rr TO:
                                                                                                                   Center fbir Marine Conservadon
                                                                                                                   1725 DeSales Stneet, NW
                                                                                                                   Washington, DC 20036
                                                                                                                   A Membership Orpnizatkm



                                                          AWE                                                                                                                   Appendix Figure C
                           t@r                          N'ftvEPA                                                                                                              Data form for beach
                                                                Unked S@
                           Marim                                E-@                                                                                                           surveys of debris.
                                                                Ag@                                                                             Ifto
                                                                                                             llv
                           Cmiservation                                                                        F/                     W                                       Center for Marine
                           ftmxdy Center for Emronmenml E&Lmm, Ea. 19M                   Printed on recycled paper               @ LOA Coatcr far Muim ConwxyWon              Conservation-beach
                                                                                                                                                                              cleanup data card.







                   58            NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual



                                                                          ITEMS COLLEUED
                                 You may find it helpful to work with a buddy as you clean the beach, one of you picking up trash and the other taWng notes. An easyway
                                 to keep track of the items you find is by making tick marks. The box is for total items; see sample below.
                                 E-riVile:                                          TMAL                                                            MTAL
                                 M cartons                                          F/-67       cups                                               FzY]
                                                                                    PLASTIC
                                                                                    lbtd                                                             Tatm
                                                                                    ork-,`                                                          afkMl,
                                 bags:                                                          fishiq nets
                                            food bapWWp--                                       hard hats
                                            trash                                               light Sticks
                                            salt                                                PC-
                                            c#- bag.                                            pipe thread prolector
                                 bottles                                                        rope
                                            be,verage. soda                                     sheeting.
                                            bleach, cleaner                                                 lorger than 2 feet
                                            rratk(water gal. q&                                             2 feet or sInciner
                                            oil, lube                                           &pack holders
                                            other bottles                                       strapping bands
                                 buckets                                                        straws
                                 caps, lids                                                     synnges
                                 cigarette filters                                              Lampon applicators
                                 cigarette lighteis                                             toys
                                 cups, utensils                                                 vegetable sacks
                                 clapers                                                        "wrice protectiorf'rings
                                 fishiN line                                                    other plasiric (speoM
                                 fishing lures, floats
                                                                              STYROFOAMO
                                                                                    (or oil- 0-tstic fbarn)
                                 buoys                                                          packong
                                 Cups                                                           pieces
                                 egg cartons                                                    plates
                                 last food containers                                           other StyrobarrP (speaFA
                                 mear Days

                                                                                    F= MONO TM UNE
                                                                                       GLASS
                                 botoes/Ws:                                                     ftiorescent IOU tubes
                                            be@ tionles                                         light bulbs
                                            food jars                                           pieces
                                            other botdes/jars                                   other gl- ('peom
                                                                                    RUBBER
                                 balloons                                                       fires
                                 conclorns                                                      other rubber (Specify)


                                                                                       METAL
                                 bottle caps                                                    55 gallon drums:
                                 cans:                                                                      R&Y
                                            aerosol                                                         rm
                                            beverage                                            pieces
                                            food                                                pull tabs
                                            other                                               wre
                                 crab/hsh traps                                                 other rnetal Ispecify)
                                                                                        PAPER
                                 b,V                                                            newspapersInwazines
                                 cardbwrd                                                       peces
                                 cartons                                                        plates
                                 cups                                                           other paper (specify)
                                                                                        WOOD
                                                                                 (leave ctriftwood on the beach]
                                 crab/lobster traps                                             pal"
                                 crates                                                         other wood (spedfy)
                                 lumber pieces


                                                                                       CLOTH

                                                              dothiVpieces
                            Renflernber tO tum the Card over and fig out your name and address and to recOrd soumes and entar4ped willldflfe!



                                                                                                                                                                                Appendix Figure C
                                                                                                                                                                                     (continued)






                                                                                              CHAPTER 4: Beach Surveysfor SmaU to Large Debris Itents                   59



                                 Name                                 Address                            Ile Tidy Britain Group: blarine Litter Research Progranune
                                                                                                                                SURVEY FORM



                                 LOCATION OF BEACH (please          TYPE OF BEACH (sand, shingle or mud, etc)                          Office Use Only
                                 state county and nearest town)



                                 DATE OF SURVEY                       IS THIS PART OF A REGULAR
                                                                      SURVEY?
                                                                      YES/No (please underline your answer)

                                 PART 1: Containers Found                  Please only record containers, If    any, from within your survey area.

                                 A. TYPE OF CONTAINER,        B. ORIGINAL CONTENTS             C. COUNTRY OF ORIGIN            D. OTHER MARKINGS SUCH AS
                                    MATERIAL & COLOUR              OR NAME OF PRODUCT                                             IMPRINTS AND DATE
                                                                                                                                  CODES, AND C014MENTS

                                 Example
                                 VV                                                                                             T+ aAsc@ELLOIC> 4172











                                 PART 2 Other Litter                                             Tick each time you find an item. If very common,
                                                                                                 write in "WIDESPREAD". Please add any general
                                             (Excluding Containers)                              comments to the reverse of this sheet.

                                 A. PAPER                                            Office J.   RAW SEWAGE                                         Office
                                                                                     Use                                                            Us
                                                                                     Only                                                           Only

                                 B. CARDBOARD                                                 K. FISHING NET



                                 C. PLASTIC FRAGMENTS                                         L. FISHING LINE



                                 D. PLASTIC BAGS OR                                           M. ROPE
                                    SHEETING


                                 E. GLASS                                                     N. WIRE



                                 F. METAL                                                     0. CLOTHING



                                 G. WOOD                                                      P. PAPER OR
                                                                                                 PLASTIC CUPS


                                 H. OIL                                                       0. CONFECTIONERY
                                                                                                 WRAPPINGS
                                                                                               (Inc. crisp packets)

                                 1. SHOTGUN CARTRIDGES                                        R. OTHER FINDS
                                                                                               (please describe)
                                                   (a) plastic case
                                                   (b) Paper case





                                                                                  Appendix Figure D
                                              Data form for beach surveys of debis. The Tidy Britain Group---survey form.







                60         NOAA Technical Report NNIFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual




                                           When Was It Made ?                                                                      WHERE WAS
                                                                            Plastic bottles are dated in several                      IT MADE?
                                                                            different ways. The moat common is
                                                                            known as a CLOCK COtE. The year in
                                                                            which the bottle was made is shown
                                                                            by the number   in the centre of th
                                                                            circle . 0 - 1980 1 . 1981   ,     -     1979              0           FRANCE
                                                                            and so on. The ;i;nth   of bott9le                       r,@q
                                                        0                   production is shown by the number
                                                                            of dots on the radiating lines.
                                                                            In this example, there are seven
                                                                            dots, the month of production was                                      FRANCE
                                                                            the 7th month - July. The number
                                                                            in the centre of the circle is 0,                          WF          FRANCE
                                                                            so the contsiner was produced in
                                                                            July 1980.
                                                                                                                                      XDIN
                                                         12                 This is another type of clock code,                       %ZUP         IRELAND
                                                                            frequently used outside the United
                                                    10        2             Kingdom. The last 2 digits of the
                                                   9    78 1@  3            year of production are found in the                        STAR        IRELAND
                                                                            centre and an arrow points to a
                                                              4             single number on the outside of the
                                                                            cir le, representing the month. In
                                                      7 6 5                 thics example, the container was made                     UPLA         PORTUGAL
                                                                            in February 1978.

                                                                                                                                                   SOUTH
                                                                            Dots and a number in a row are another                                 AFRICA
                                                                            type of date code. The number at
                                                                            the end or beginning of the row
                                                                            represents the last digit of the year
                                                                            of production. For example, 7 = 1977,
                                                                            and so on. The dots show the month                                     BELGIUM
                                                                            in the year when the container was
                                                                            made.  One dot Is removed for each
                                                                            month, so 12 dots is January, 9 dots
                                                                            April, and so on. In the example,
                                                                            the date of production would be                             IN         BELGIUM
                                                                            November 1980.
                                            BarCodes                                                                                    A
                                            These consist of a series       of numbers and parallel vertical                           P B         CANADA
                                            lines. Each product sold        in a supermarket will eventually
                                            have its owr code. The first two numbers show the nationality                               U
                                            of the 'number bank'. The next      five numbers show the manu-
                                            facturer and the last five show     the product.
                                                                            00-09 USA + Canada       70        Norway              I HOLMIA DENMARK
                                                                            30-37 France             73        Sweden
                                                                            40-43 West Germany       76        Switzerland
                                                                            49  Japan                77        Australia             HAUSTRUP      DENMARK
                                                                                                                                    PLASTIC
                                                                            50  UK                   80-83     Italy
                                              5                             54  Belgium              84        Spain                VANGLIA"tA        SPAIN
                                                                            57  Denmark              89        Netherlands                           UNITED
                                                                                                                                       JEYES       KINGDOM
                                              Example:                      64  Finland              90-91     Austria
                                              50 00317  00201 3      Paperboard carton. Longlife Kilk.         1 pint. UK.
                                              Please record all numbers on the survey form.                                                        UNITED
                                                                                                                                        0 KINGDOM
                                                                  STOP PRESS!
                                              Please keep a special watch for any pink plastic cylinders                                           UNITED
                                              in your study area. Their shape and dimensions are shown                                             KINGDOM
                                              in the diagram.               If you find any, please record
                                              the number found in your study area in Section R (other finds)
                                              of part 2 (other litter).                                                              CASCELLOID     UNITED
                                                                                                                                                   KINGDOM


                                                                                                                                     MONSANTO         USA

                                                         i
                                                           ch
                                                          n
                                                                                                                                           rc         USA
                                                                                3 Inches                       @I            I
                                                                            Appendix Figure D (continued)





                                                                  Chapter 5

                                                              Benthic Surveys
                                               for Large Submerged Debris Items


             General Description                                              Population of Interest

             Benthic surveys for medium to very large debris                  The population of interest is the amount of debris on
             items involve counting, classifying, and, in some                the bottom of a specific area of ocean at a specified
             cases, collecting items that have sunk to the'sea floor.         time. The population of interest can be as small as
             Only small sections of the population of interest will           the bottom of a bay or cove, or as large as an ocean
             be surveyed, but results can be extrapolated to the              basin. Restrictions to the population of interest may
             total area. Collection and disposal of debris will de-           occur because of floor composition (i.e., substrate
             pend on the technique used for collection and the                and topography), depth, fauna, flora, and. use pat-
             size of the debris.                                              terns of the area (e.g., cargo shipping lanes, fishing
               Three survey techniques are discussed in this                  grounds, or recreational areas).
             chapter.                                                           Restrictions to the population of interest may be a
             1. trawl surveys                                                 result of the survey technique more than any other
             2. submersible surveys                                           reason. For example, if the survey technique must be
             3. diving surveys                                                a trawl survey, then even if the population of interest
                                                                              was benthic debris in the Great Barrier Reef of Aus-
               Trawl surveys, which have been used most often for             tralia, the population of interest would have to be
             assessing types and amounts of benthic marine debris             changed because trawl surveys are not possible in
             (Holmstr6m 1975; Jewett 1976; Feder et al. 1978;                 that area.
             Berger and Armistead 1987; Bingel et al. 1987; FA0
             1989; June 1990), are the main focus of this chapter.
             Because of their high costs and limited availability,            Historical Information
             remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and manned
             submersibles have been used only in a few studies on             The factors that may effect the trawl survey tech-
             benthic marine debris (Carr et al. 1985; High 1985).             nique are as follows:
             Divers using scuba equipment have assessed the ef-               9 depth (e.g., this affects the amount of cable
             fects of "ghost fishing" by lost nets (Carr et al. 1985)           needed for trawls)
             in the North Atlantic Ocean and benthic debris in                * slope (e.g., a bottom with a steep slope cannot be
             McMurdo Sound, Antarctica (Lenihan et al. 1990).                   sampled by a trawl)
             Note that all of these techniques are still in an ex-            * substrate composi   Ition (e.g., areas with large rocks
             perimental stage. Further, repeated and repeatable                 and pinnacles can damage the trawl net)
             studies are needed.                                              0 currents (e.g., cross-currents can cause fouling of
                                                                                the trawl net)
             Objectives and Purpose                                           a dump sites (e.g., areas for oceanic dumping by cit-
                                                                                ies should be avoided)
             Benthic surveys can be used      to provide information          * local fishing practices (e.g., areas with crab or lob-
             on the distribution and amount of debris on the                    ster traps may pose a hazard to trawls)
             ocean floor for a specific area. The debris of interest          For the other two survey techniques, bottom depth
             is usually large to very large and often of a particular         and ocean currents will be the most important fac-
             type (e.g., lost fishing nets). Few baseline surveys             tors. In addition, visibility will be an important factor
             have been done for benthic debris (FA0 1989, June                (e.g., high plankton density will make underwater
             1990). Other studies noted marine debris found                   navigation and debris counts impractical).
             while collecting other benthic samples (Holmstr6m                  From Guideline 4 to Guideline 8 (see page 62) the
             1975; Jewett 1976; Feder et al. 1978; Bingel et al.              three survey techniques are quite different. The
             1987).                                                           manual will first look at the guidelines in relation to


                                                                                                                                       61







             62       NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual

             trawl surveys, since trawls are most often used. Sub-              Variables to Consider-
             mersible surveys will be second, followed by diving
             surveys.                                                             Vessel Variabilit)@-Different ships will tow more ef-
                                                                                fectively than others. This variability is due to the
             Trawl Surveys                                                      ability of the ship and crew to identically reproduce
                                                                                tows, stay on track, and handle variability (such as a
                                                                                crab pot encountered in the middle of a tow).
             Field Measurement                                                    Net Variability-The size of mesh is the most im-
                                                                                portant net variable to consider. Tows cannot be com-
             Trawl surveys usually seek to measure benthic debris               pared unless the meshes are the same, owing to dif-
             (number of items, density, or wet/dry weight per                   ferential escapement of debris (unless all debris
             trawl).                                                            below a certain size is not considered). Other net-
                                                                                related variables are the sweep area and volume of
             Description-The ship slows to a "trawl speed" (this                the net. Acoustic mensuration systems are available
             varies with the type of boat, type of net and sea condi-           that measure both horizontal and vertical net open-
             tions), at which time the trawl is released from the               ings constantly during the tow, so differences
             stern of the ship, either over a stern wheel or down a             between nets used can be quantified. However,
             ramp. The net is extended such that the footrope is                changes in these variables may cause problems in
             on the bottom. The footrope should be a "hard                      standardizing tows.
             bottom" type with very small bobbins or a metal bar.                 Foo"e Pariabilii@--"Hard bottom" nets should be
             Once the trawl net reaches the bottom, the time is                 used with only the smallest bobbin size. Many bottom
             recorded. The ship maintains the trawl speed for the               trawl nets are designed to scare fish and do not "dig"
             duration of the trawl. After a prespecified time has               sufficiently (if at all) into the sea floor (due to large
             elapsed, the trawl net is retrieved and the time re-               bobbins) to "catch" many kinds of marine debris
             corded (Fig. 8). From the length of time on the sea                (i.e., pipes, heavy cans, large plastic .sheets).
             bottom and average ship speed, the distance trawled                  Depth Variabilii@-If minor increases in depth oc-
             can be measured. Most trawling vessels have LORAN                  cur during a tow (e.g., 5-10 in on a 100-200 m depth
             C or GPS navigation equipment, which will make dis-                tow), the net may list off the bottom. Compensations
             tance an easy measurement.                                         should be made so that the bottom is followed at all
                The same trawling procedure should be repeated                  times. As with net variability, acoustic and mechanical
             at each predetermined sampling point. The speed                    devices are available that detect contact of the foot-
             and time towed should be the same for all trawls.                  rope with the bottom during the tow.




                   (6) TraW lawing     (E) Releasirigindependeritpice;rable
                   @  Heaving In       @ Danlenoe moving of chute
                   (D Cable            (Z) Taldng in body of travA (diagonal 11M
                   Q  Otter board      @ vertical Int
                   (2) Warp and lead to VAnch EMPLYIngoodend
                   (D Cable and lead





                                                                                                                            4







                                                                                                                       Stem travAlng







                                                                         Figure 8
                                       Method of heaving gear aboard a stern trawler (adapted from Garner 1967).






                                                                           CffAPTER 5. Benthic Surveysfor Large Submerged Debris Items       63

                 Weather-Rough sea conditions can cause net en-                  Fisheries Service), with only the shipping and insur-
              tanglement, loss of debris from the net, or lift the net           ance fees to pay (which will depend on the location
              off the sea floor.                                                 of the trawl survey).
                 Measurement Vdriabilil)-The above factors all con-                 The cost of the ship will depend on the population
              tribute to measurement variability. In addition, errors            of interest and the size of the net. To charter a ship
              in sorting large tows (especially when tows are done               about 30-m long to perform a bottom trawl survey in
              in cooperation with fishery trawl surveys) can be a                the eastern Bering Sea will cost around $3,500-
              problem when measuring debris.                                     $4,000/day, excluding fuel. Fuel costs will be about
                                                                                 $300-$350/day when trawling. While in transit, fuel
              Data Collection-Data collected        with respect to cat-         costs will be about $500-$600/day. A 30-day cruise
              egories of debris are similar to those in the previous             could therefore cost around $110,000, excluding net
              chapters (see Chapter 1, Categories of Marine De-                  and the personnel costs. The cost will increase dra-
              bris). Specifically, the following information should              matically if the ship is larger. The size of the vessel
              be collected at each tow.                                          needed will vary depending upon the following:
                 date                                                            o  the size of the net-the larger the net, the more
                 time tow started                                                   horsepower needed to pull the net;
                 time tow stopped                                                o  depth of the area to be trawled-the greater the
                 exact location (either latitude/longitude of each                  depth, the more cable needed to reach the bottom.
                 trawl [e.g., 60'N by 175'W] or distance traveled                   The ratio of cable to depth is usually considered to
                 between each trawl (e.g., 5.2 mi from trawl 3))                    be 3:1, i.e., a trawl depth of 100 meters needs 300
                 speed of ship during trawl
                 weather conditions throughout trawl                                meters of cable. A 30-in ship can only trawl to
                 any holes in the net at the end of the trawl                       about 200 in owing to the amount of cable it can
                 any trawl period during which the net is not drag-                 hold; and
                 ging the bottom                                                    distance from shore-a large vessel, 60 in or better,
                                                                                    is needed for high-seas trawling.
                 Few data forms are available for benthic debris sur-
              veys (see Appendix Figures A-C (this chapter). Forms                  The crew will handle the deploying and retrieving
              for other trawl surveys may be adapted for debris                  of the net in most cases, but the sorting of debris
              purposes. Appendix Figures A and B (this chapter)                  once on deck must be handled by the investigator or
              comprises forms used by the National Marine Fish-                  assisting personnel. For assisting personnel, the cost
              eries Service for demersal trawl surveys for bottom                is similar to the National Marine Fisheries Service
              fish. Figure 9 depicts a suggested data form for trawl             marine mammal observer program: the salary will
              surveys.                                                           run around $3,000/mo plus travel expenses (room
                                                                                 and board may be additional, if not included in the
              Material and Personnel-The basic equipment                         price of the ship charter).
              needed for trawl surveys is categorized, by two                       On the basis of the preceding information,
              objectives:                                                        the typical price of an entire 30-day cruise, including
                                                                                 the cost of the net, may well be $150,000 or more.
              ï¿½  Sample collection                                               Though the net can be reused, the cost for
                 a bottom trawl net and all equipment needed for                 continued trawling still will be quite high. Using a
                 the deployment of the net log forms for sample                  vessel of opportunity can reduce costs to those associ-
                 collection                                                      ated with the personnel required for sorting the
              ï¿½  Trawl analysis                                                  debris, travel to and from the ship, and room and
                 large bags (@!103 L) to pile and store debris                   board.
                 scales for weighing debris (0-100 kg)
                 protective gloves for handling samples
                 data sheets (sample analysis)                                   Quality Assurance Program
                 The greatest expense is the cost for the ship and               Because of the number of trawls likely to be per-
              the net. A large net designed for marine debris stud-              formed, a quality assurance/ quality control program
              ies is about 4 in high and 12 in across and will cost              Dlan is one of the most important aspects of the trawl
              about $20,000-$30,000 (Net Systems, Inc., Bain-
                                                                                 'Survey. For example, the National Marine Fisheries
              bridge Island, WA). It may be possible to obtain nets              Service has been performing trawl surveys in the
              through an interagency loan (e.g., National Marine                 Eastern Bering Sea since 1973 and has a detailed






             64        NOAA Technical Report NNIFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual



                       Vessel Name                                       Starting Location (lat/long)
                       Date (Yr/Mo/Day)                                  Ending Location (tat/long)
                       Gear Depth (in m)                                 Loran Start

                       Bottom Depth (in m)                               Loran End
                       Sea State (Beaufort)                              Time: Start Trawl (24-hr time)
                                                                         Time: End Trawl (24-hr time)

                       Bottom Type (hard, rocky, mud, silt)
                       Area Use Type (commercial fishing, shipping lane, pleasure craft, etc.)



                       Net

                              Net Type
                              Door Description (width, height in m)
                              Mesh Size (mm stretched):

                                     Wings                    Body

                                     Liner                    Cod End

                              Footrope:

                                     Bobbin Size (in cm)

                                     Chain Size (in mm)
                                     Bar Size (in meters)

                              Wireout (in meters)
                              Average Trawl Net Horizontal Opening (in meters)

                              Percent of Time with Bottom Contact



                                                                      Figure 9
                                                      Suggested template for trawl survey forms.



             document describing exactly how trawl surveys                      The items listed below should be included in the
             should be performed.                                            quality assurance plan.
               As noted previously, surveys should use the same              0  specific boundary of the population of interest
             trawling procedure at each station. A set procedure is          9  all aspects of the net (e.g., door width, mesh size,
             not only good on a day-to-day basis but on a year-to-              volume)
             year basis as well. For comparisons to be meaningful,           *  specific points trawled (e.g., accurate location coor-
             the trawls must be as similar as possible, and any dif-            dinates)
             ferences must be noted. A set sampling procedure                0  categories used to sort debris
             cannot be done without a strict quality assurance pro-          0  data analysis details
             gram plan in effect.






                                                                   CHAPTER 5. Benthic Surveysfor Large Submerged Debris Items  65


                                            Percent Subsampled
                           Items                                       Disposal                 Comments
                       (Categories)        Number         Weight                             (Probable Origin,
                                                                                          Material Composition)










































                                                            Figure 9 (Continued)



              ship and accessory gear description                        out the population of interest. Certain large areas
              crew efficiency at handling trawl                          will have virtually no debris while other areas will
              subsampling and sorting procedures                         have significant amounts, which is why the historical
                                                                         information on the population of interest is particu-
                                                                         larly important.
            Field Sampling Designs                                         If a study is meant to give a baseline assessment or
                                                                         a year-to-year assessment of the type and amount of
            As with floating small debris, one cannot assume that        benthic debris found in the population.of interest,
            the materials will be randomly distributed through-          then a regular systematic or random sample will give






             66       NOAA Technical Report NMIS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
             a good assessment of the amount. If, however, a study             Note: The "fishing" power correction factor has not
             is meant to assess changes in benthic debris over                 been computed for any debris type, so in most cases
             space and time due to legislation, then one should                it will be assumed to be 1.0.
             concentrate samples in areas where a change is most                  For an overall mean CPUE and its variance for the
             likely to be detected.                                            population of interest of a specific strata:
                In either case, multiple techniques for benthic ma-                                                   N
             rine debris assessment would increase the                                                                f(CPUEj)
             information about the population of interest. For ex-                       Mean CPUE= EP-UE             i@j
             ample, a study might use a trawl survey of an area                                                          N
             followed up by an ROV survey.                                                                            N
                                                                                                                      Y.(CPUEj-CPUE)1
                                                                                                                      i=1
             Analytical Procedures                                                 Variance CPUE = SICPUE     -          N (N- 1)
             Many standardized techniques for analyzing biologi-               where N = the number of hauls in the area.
             cal data can be obtained from systematic or stratified
             trawl surveys or both (Doubleday and Rivard 1981)@                   To determine the total weight of debris'in an. area
             These techniques may be adapted for analyzing                     or strata, perform the following calculations:
             benthic debris survey data. One difference will be the
             need to disregard factors correcting for "animal                               Total weight = WtT = A (CPUE)
             movement." Otherwise, the statistical techniques will                                                    C
             be the same when assessing standing stock.                                                               2
                                                                                         Variance weight = S1Wt @ X2 WME),
                There are no "standard" techniques available to                                                       C
             perform analyses dealing with changing accumula-                  where      A = specified area of interest (e.g., eastern
             tion of debris. Research is being conducted on how                                 Bering Sea), and
             to evaluate this kind of data and the effects associ-
             ated with it Uune 1990). The problem of clustering                           C =   vulnerability; the fraction caught ver-
             samples and assessing changes over time must be                                    sus the fraction missed during a trawl
             taken into account:                                                                sweep.
                To assessing the amount of benthic debris.in an                Note: As with "fishing" power, vulnerability is assumed
             area of a random sample or a strata of a sample, the              to be 1.0 for most debris items.
             estimate is made using standard fisheries trawl survey               If using a stratified random sample, the overall
             procedures Uones 1990) in the following manner:                   mean would be calculated as follows:
                For each haul, catch per unit effort (CPUE) is                                                n
             measured, usually the amount (either number or                                                   Y(Ak CPUEk)
             weight of pieces) per area swept (usually in ha or                            Overall CPUE               n
             nmi2, e.g., 100 kg/ha). The area swept is the distance                                                   Y(Ah)
             trawled multiplied by net width. CPUE is calculated
             from a trawl survey i for a debris type j as follows:                                            n
                                                                                                                      S2E-
                                                                                                                       PUE)
                                                                                                  S2          k=1
                               CPUE           Wij                                        Overall CPUE                 n
                                            Di Fij Pi                                                                 X(Ah)2
                                                                                                                      k-1
             where Wij =      weight (or number)     of debris type j on
                              trawl i (kg),                                    where      n = number of strata, and
                      Di =    distance trawled on trawl i (km)                            Ak = area of each strata.
                      Pi =    effective trawl width for trawl i (km),
                              and                                                 To find the total estimated weight of the area of a
                      Fij =   relative "fishing" power correction fac-         stratified sample, the following is performed:
                              tor (which is how well one ship's                                                       n
                              efficiency at "catching" debris is com-                        Total weight =WtT=           WtTi
                              pared to another ship's in the same
                              area) for trawl i in respect to debris                                       12
                              type j.                                                            Overall  S ,t -      S 2Wt






                                                                        CHAPTER 5. Benthic Surveysfor Large Submerged Debris Item        67
              Submersible Surveys                                               Data Collection-It may be difficult to categorize
                                                                                benthic debris accurately. Broad categories will usu-
              Field Measurement                                                 ally be used. When actual collection by use of
                                                                                manipulators found on some submersibles is used,
              The field measurements of importance are the num-                 categories can be more narrow. The following data
              ber and, if possible, the type and size of the benthic            should be collected during each dive.
              debris observed in a strip transect, or per dive.                 o date
              Description-The submersible is deployed from a                    o time the bottom or predetermined depth is
              mothership (the exact procedure depends on the                      r.eached
              type of submersible). Upon reaching the bottom, or                0 time the ascent is started (i.e., end of the transect
                                                                                  or course)
              more specifically, just above the bottom, the survey              0 exact location (either latitude/ longitude [e.g.,
              will start. The submersible should follow a predeter-
              mined transect as closely as possible, although this is             60'N by 175'W] at each dive or distance between
              often difficult to do (Caddy 1976). The debris is ob-               each dive [5.2 miles N from last trawfl)
              served, counted, and classified, if possible, although            0 speed of submersible
              rarely collected with the submersible manipulators.               0 any changes of distance off bottom
              Debris may be observed directly from manned                       0 depth
              submersibles or via a camera. Unmanned sub-                       e bottom topography and substrate type
              mersibles with camera systems are also available. As              * estimated range of visibility
              with the trawl surveys, to calculate the area surveyed,           0 number, type, and size of debris observed
              the starting and ending time of the transect are re-                Noting any biological growth on the debris may
              corded and the speed is held as constant as possible.             help to determine the age of the debris (Carr et al.
              If multiple transects are made to assess the piopula-             1985). Figure 10 is a suggested data form for use with
              tion of interest, the procedures should be repeated as            a submersible survey.
              consistently as possible during each transect.
                                                                                Material and Personnel -Besides the submersible
              Variables to Consider-                                            and,support vessel, the only materials necessary are
                                                                                the data forms for tabulating the survey. The sub-
                Weather-Launching        and retrieving of manned               mersible and support vessel are usually v              Iery
              submersibles and large ROVs require a low sea state.              expensive. The cost of a submersible will depend a
              State 3 is usually the upper limit for a safe launch              great deal on the maximum working depth and
              (Keller 1977).                                                    whether a manned or unmanned submersible i's
                Vessel Variability-Different submersibles will have             needed. A manned submersible with a maximum
              different areas of visibility and different degrees of            working depth of 330 in and the neces ary support
              mobility. Visibility will depend on the submersible                                                           s
              lights, the size of the view port, and on the type of             vessel will likely cost more than $7 ,000/day excluding
              camera lens. Mobility will depend on whether the                  fuel. An ROV with a maximum working depth of
              submersible is tethered or untethered, the type of                2,000 in will run around $2,000/day in addition to
              servo propellers used, and7the size of the vehicle.               the support vessel at $10,000/day excluding fuel. For
                Characteristics of marine debris-The color, size,               very deep dives (e.g., 5,000 in) the price could be
              shape, extent of encrustation, and degree of burial               over $10,000/day for the ROV and $10,000/day for
              will affect the sightability of the debris.                       the support vessel. To have a manned submersible
                Turbidity-Very turbid waters will reduce visibility             capable of operating at depths over 2,000 in would
              to a few cm (Palmer 1977). At great depths (>1000                 cost much more than the ROVs. All these previous
              in), however, visibility will be fairly clear (about 60           prices include the necessary crews but not necessarily
              in), which is due, in part, to the lack of life (Keller           an obs.erver. The prices also do not include the trans-
              1977).                                                            portation of the submersible to the dive location
                Measurement Variabilit)-As with trawl surveys, the              (shipping will vary greatly with the size of the sub-
              variables listed above will limit an investigator's abil-         mersible). Obviously, a submersible survey can be
                                                                                very expensive, unless a submersible is already owned
              ity to classify debris as to type or size, or even limit          by the institution or can be borrowed through an
              the ability to detect debris. Errors in identifying what          interagency loan (e.g., NOANs West Coast National
              is debris and what is not will, however, depend greatly           Underwater Research Centers).
              on the training and experience of the observer.







            68      NOAA Technical Report NAM 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                   Observer Name                                   Starting Location (lat/long)
                   Pilot(s) Name(s)                                Ending Location (lat/long)
                   Support Vessel Name                             Submersible's Speed (km/hr)
                   Submersible Name                                Time of Descent (24-hr time)
                   Date (Yr/Mo/Day)                                Time Observing Begins (24-hr time)
                   Substrate Composition (mud, rock, etc.)         Time Observing Ends (24-hr time)

                                                                   Time of Ascent (24-hr time)

                   Bottom Depth (in meters)                        Estimated Visibility at Bottom (in m)

                   Depth of Submersible (in m)                     Estimated Search Width (in m)



                       Time                Object                Category                      Comments
                                      (if identifiable)




























                                                                  Figure 10
                                                 Suggested data form for submersible surveys.


            Quality Assurance Program                                      Beyond safety, the points noted for the trawl
                                                                         survey quality assurance program plan also apply
            Quality assurance/ quality control program plans go          to submersible surveys. Some items to be included
            beyond repeatability when dealing with submersibles.         in the quality assurance plan (not including safety,
            Because of danger to personnel, safety is a prime            see Pritzlaff [1979], and excluding the specific guide-
            consideration. A good guide to safety in submersible-        lines set for the submersible to be used) are as
            oriented research can be found in Pritzlaff (1979).          follows:







                                                                          CHAPTER 5. Benthic Surveysfor Large Submerged Debris Items       69
                specific boundary of the population of interest                   When using transects, procedures in sighting sur-
                large physical features and substrata on the ocean              veys for floating debris (Chapter 2) can be employed.
                floor                                                           Strip transects will most likely be used. The reason
                predetermined course for the submersible                        for using strip transects instead of a line transect is
                actual course followed by the submersible                       twofold: first, determining distance underwater can
                means of determining visibility                                 be difficult at best; and second, the width of view may
                categories used for describing (sorting) debris                 be a meter or less owing to the size of the observa-
                Details of data analysis                                        tion port or the size of the lens on the camera. To
                observer and pilot experience                                   calculate the density of debris in an area, see Chapter
                specifics about the submersible:                                2, Analytical Procedures. Strip transects are designed
                -manned or unmanned                                             for smaller areas and fewer dives compared to the
                -tethered or untethered                                         CPUE method.
                -size of observation port
                -type. of camera (s) used (including lens)
                -manufacturer name of vessel                                    Diving Surveys
                -any specific modifications used

                                                                                Field Measurement
              Field Sampling Designs
                                                                                The field measurement for diving surveys is the
              As stated earlier in Trawl Surveys (this chapter)                 amount (number of items or weight) of benthic de-
              benthic debris is not likely to be randomly distrib-              bris per quadrat or transect. This method is
              uted throughout the population of interest.                       particularly suitable for assessing medium to very
              Depending on the type of study being performed,                   large debris or when the population of interest is
              different sampling schemes should be used.                        small (e.g., <1 ha) or both.
              Submersibles are very expensive, and thus, dive time
              must be used cost effectively. Limited search times               Description-Two methods used for assessing popula-
              may bias results, so declustering techniques (as de-              tions of benthic organisms are the quadrat method
              scribed by Isaaks and Srivastava 1989) may be                     and the transect method (Dart and Rainbow 1976;
              needed.                                                           Hiscock 1987,1989). While these techniques have not
                Transect methods will provide accurate data on de-              been tested for assessing marine debris, they merit
              bris for a small area and will be more appropriate                discussion because neither trawl nor submersible sur-
              than the procedure in the following discussion on                 veys can be used in very shallow waters (<5 in).
              accumulation studies. The transect method also can
              be used to give a continuous description of debris                Options-
              type and changes in composition throughout the                       Quadrat-A map of the chosen area has a uniform
              population of interest.                                           grid placed over it, often generated by computer. A
                CPUE methods will yield an overall estimate of how              sample of the squares (blocks) of the grid or the ver-
              much debris is on the bottom but will yield little spe-           tices of the grid are randomly selected, using a
              cific information on the composition of the benthic               random number table or a random number genera-
              debris over the population of interest. A stratified              tor on a computer or calculator. A team of at least
              sample would be best, using depth and area usage as               two experienced divers with scuba or snorkeling
              the stratification variables.                                     equipment sample at the selected sites. A sample grid
                                                                                is marked on the bottom, using stakes and cord or a
                                                                                large, fabricated metal or PVC pipe square. The area
              Analytical Procedures                                             within the square then is searched meticulously for
                                                                                all debris. Small pieces are collected for sorting and
              Procedures for data analysis are similar to the pro-              weighing on shore or on the deck of the boat. The
              cedures used for the trawl surveys. The difference is             larger pieces are recorded with a@ underwater pad
              that instead of strip width being the net width, it is            and grease pencil or photographed with an underwa-
              the estimated width of the field of vision. Also, in-             ter camera or both. Their type and estimated size
              stead of the CPUE being kg/ha, the CPUE will be the               should be recorded.
              amount of debris observed per area (e.g., 50.7.nets/                 Transect-To conduct this type of survey, a
              ha). This analytical procedure generally will be used             weighted line is placed, as taut as possible, on the
              when performing many dives in a large area.                       bottom. A pole (usually made of metal) is taken







              70      NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
              down to the line. As the diver moves along the line                indicates the necessary gear for diving surveys in cold
              holding the pole parallel to the bottom, one end of                water <1.5 kin offshore.
              the pole is always touching the line and the pole is               0data sheets
              held at at 90" angle to the line. As in the quadrat                0underwater pad and grease pencil
              technique, the diver monitors benthic debris occur-                enet bag with plastic liner
              ring within the area swept by the pole. The                        0cord (usually nylon) with weights
              procedure may then be repeated along the other side                9stakes and hammer
              of the line.   I.                                                  opole (for transect)
                The quadrat or transect procedures are repeated at               oflippers
              each of the selected blocks, vertices, or points. Again,           0mask
              any new quadrats or transects must be the same size                esnorkel
              and configuration to ensure conformity.                            ediver knife
              Variables to Consider-                                             0protective gloves
                                                                                 eweights and weight belt
                Weather-Getting in and out of the water              from        0buoyancy compensator
              shore or a boat can be difficult in rough weather.                 0regulator
              Also, surges can make it difficult to run a transect or            9depth gauge
              collect debris.                                                    oair tank
                Characteristics of marine debris--As with submersible            0camera
              surveys, the color, size, shape, extent of encrustation,           0wet or dry suit
              and degree of burial of objects will affect their sight-           9boat or, ship (depending on the distance from
              ability.                                                            shore)
                Turbidity---In highly turbid water, visibility will be            As with other surveys, the most expensive item will
              reduced, thus increasing the likelihood that         objects       likely be the ship or boat. Vessel costs will increase
              will be overlooked.
                Equipment Variability--Generally, the larger the air             with the distance from shore. In dives close to shore,
              tanks, the longer a p   .erson can stay submerged and              generally <1.5 kin, or in bays or coves, a small boat,
              thus a longer transect or a larger quadrat can be                  such as a double or triple hull Boston Whaler, may be
              sampled.                                                           suitable. A boat such as this may cost $50/day to rent;
                Measurement Variabilit                                           however, it may be possible to borrow one through
                                         .@-Training and experience              an interagency loan. A complete set of scuba equip-
              will affect the amount of debris seen in any given                 ment, excluding a wet or dry suit, will be about $50/
              survey.                                                            day to rent or $1,500 to purchase. A wet suit can be
              Data Collection-It should be possible to categorize                rented for about $10/day and be purchased for
              and measure collected debris with a high degree of                 about $400. A dry suit can be rented for about $25/
              accuracy; however, the larger debris not brought up                day and can be purchased for $500-1,000. Owing to
              may be difficult to categorize due to algal growth and             the.variety of equipment, purchasing all the scuba
              time allotted for each dive. Along with the sorting of             equipment and suits is best to ensure proper func-
              the data, the following information should be col-                 tion and fit.
              lected at each dive.                                                The scuba divers should be experienced and have
                                                                                 at least an open water certification.. Commercial diver
                date                                                             wages typically are $1,500/week; given that safety
                exact location of dive (often distance from shore)               rules generally require no less than two divers, a
                sampling quadrat(s) or line segment(s) sampled                   week-long survey will cost about $3,000. Noncommer-
                visibility                                                       cial divers are available for considerably less.
                bottom topography (e.g., rocky or sandy)                          The total cost for a diving survey in cold water that
                number, type, size, and condition of debris not col-             uses commercial divers and is <1.5 km from shore
                lected                                                           will run $3,600/week based on daily equipment
                depth                                                            rental rates. For the same conditions and if all the
                Suggested data forms for use in quadrat and                      equipment is purchased (except the boat, which is
              transect techniques are presented in Figures 11 and                still rented), the cost will be about $5,700/week (the
              12, respectively.                                                  equipment which may be reused will be about $2,400
                                                                                 total). Diving is obviously the least expensive survey
              Material and Personnel-The         necessary equipment             technique discussed in this chapter, but it is also the
              will depend on the survey location. The following list             most limited.






                                                                    CHAPTER 5. Benthic Surveysfor Large Submerged Debris Items  71


                    Divers' Names                                       Substrate Composition

                    Date (Yr/Mo/Day)                                    Quadrat Area (in sq m)

                    Depth (in m)

                    Estimated Visibility (in m)


                                Small Debris Items                                  Large Debris Items
                                    (Collected)                                   (From Underwater Pad)


                    Object    Weight   Category      Comments       Object   Estimated    Category   Marked     Comments
                                                                                size



                                                   (e.g., amount of
                                                   algae growth on
                                                       item)































                                                                  J-

                                                                    Figure 11
                                                  Suggested template for quadrat survey forms.


             Quality Assurance Program                                     Certified divers have safety training, but specific
                                                                           hazards and risks associated with each dive should
             As with the quality assurance program plan for                also be considered. For reasons of safety and
             research in submersibles, the quality assurance               efficiency, a detailed pre-dive plan should be
             program plan for diving surveys must consider                 made. The plan should consider the following
             the safety of the divers as well as the accuracy              information:
             and repeatability of the data collection procedure.






             72      NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                     Divers' Names                                    Substrate Composition
                     Date (Yr/Mo/Day)                                 Length of Line (in m)

                     Depth (in m)                                     Length of Pole (in m)

                     Estimated Visibility (in m)



                                 Small Debris Items                                 Large Debris Items
                                     (Collected)                                  (From Underwater Pad)


                     Object   Weight    Category     Comments       Object   Estimated    Category   Marked    Conunents
                                                                                size



                                                   (e.g., amount of
                                                   algae growth on
                                                        item)































                                                                  Figure 12
                                                 Suggested template for transect survey forms.



             ï¿½ How much time is needed to sample predeter-               0 How will emergency situations be handled?
               mined transects, and quadrats?                            * How much time is needed at each dive site?
             ï¿½ How much time is needed in transit between shore            -How long will it take to decompress?
               and site? Between sites?                                    -How long will it take to get to and from the bot-
             ï¿½ How much time is needed to set up quadrat or                   tom?
               transect lines?                                             -How long will it take to survey the transect or
                                                                              quadrat?






                                                                       CHAPTER 5. Benthic Surveysfor Large Submerged Debris Item       73
               -How much time can each,diver spend in the wa-                         n  =  to tal number of quadrats,
                 ter per day?                                                         A  =  total area of study (ha),
               -How much time does each tank give each diver?                         a  =  area of each quadrat (ha),
               Items that might be included in the quality assur-                     R  =  ratio of total area to quadrat area,
            ance program plan for the survey itself are as follows:                   S' =  variance between quadrats (#I/hal          or
                                                                                            kgl/hal),
               categories used for describing (sorting) debris                        11@=  estimate   of total amount or weight of
               maximum size of debris to collect                                            debris in  the area of study (# or kg) or
               length of each transect or size of each quadrat                        A     both, and.
                                                                                      jj2 =
               measurement of visibility                                                    variance associated with the estimate of
               details of the data analysis                                             N   debris (#2/hal or kgl/hal)
               diver experience
               Repeatability should be ensured between the two                  The only difference in calculations for transect sur-
            plans listed previously. The importance of this repeat-           veys is that the average number or weight of benthic
            ability cannot be overstressed.                                   debris per quadrat is now defined as the average
                                                                              number or weight of benthic debris per transect, and
                                                                              the area per transect is defined by the length of the
            Analytical Procedures                                             cord multiplied by twice the width of the pole.
            The two techniques-quadrat and transect-are simi-                 Summary
            lar. In each survey, the total number or weight (or
            both) of benthic debris in the population of interest             1. Three survey techniques are discussed: trawl, sub-
            is observed and collected if possible. The average                  mersible, and diving surveys. Because of limited
            number or weight (or both) of debris is calculated                  experience in using these three approaches when
            from all the samples and extrapolated to the total                  assessing benthic debris, all techniques should be
            area. The analysis is very similar to that described                considered experimental at this point, especially
            for trawl surveys, except that each quadrat or transect             submersible and diving surveys.
            should cover the same area, a, or bias can be                     2. The number or, weight of benthic debris is the
            introduced.                                                         standard field measurement. Sampling results can
              I The following are calculations for quadrat surveys              be extrapolated to estimate the amount of benthic
            (Seber 1982):              n                                        debris in the population of interest.
                                       'X Y,    A                             3. Of the three techniques, trawl surveys have been
                                 X=    '= ], R                                  used the most often.
                                       n
                                                                              4. Trawl surveys are the least expensive technique to
                                                                                perform in deep water (>50 m), especially when
                                                                                taking advantage of vessels of opportunity.
                                       n                                      5. Quality assurance/quality control program plans
                                       X (Xi -                                  are extremely important for all aspects of each sur-
                                 S2       n -                                   vey technique, with safety and repeatability being
                                                                                of highest priority.
                                       S2(I                                   6. A statistician, who has dealt with similar types of
                              o-2 = R  2
                                                                                studies, should be consulted at the outset of survey
                                N      n       R2                               planning and be involved through the completion
                                                                                of the study.
            where @C = average amount         or weight per quadrat
                           (#/ha or kg/ha) or both,
                     X, = amount or weight in a specific quadrat
                           (#/ha or kg/ha) or both,






              74       NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
                                                                     Appendix

                                                 HAUL-POSITION FORM
                                                 2 3 4                              6 7
                                    VESSEL I I       I I      - CRUISE                             MAUL
                                           14 13              16 IF           is 19
                                                                                       YOUR
                                    YEAR E=          MONTH    [= DAY LLJ NAME

                                                     LATITUDE                    ON        0
                                                 20 21 22     23 24 26 21        28 29           32 33 35 36
                                    POSITION 1+1                                                                       JEJ
                                    START  ...                I I I I I                         I I I I _j
                              X                  DEGREE       MIN.                              MR.                          45
                              C)
                              U_                 37  38 39    40 41 43 44        1 4514614714@  149  30 32 53
                              =     END .....
                              C)
                                                 RATE   FIRST READING            RATE      SECOND    READING
                                                 55 56  So 59 60 61 62 64 65     67 60     70 71 72  73 74    7
                                    L?RAN        =      I I I I I I I            =         I
                                    S ART
                              C)
                              0-    LORAN        79 so  82- 83 84 83 as as so    91 92     94 95 96  97 98 100 101
                                    END ...      =      I I I I I FT@            I I I     I I I I I I I I
                                    ----------   DUP. COL. 1-36 FROM ABOVE
                                    R
                                    G AR DEPT"                37 38 39 40
                                        . AVG.   (FM)                               MIN                 AX
                              0
                              LL    BOTTOM DEPTH              41 42 43 44
                              _j TO. AVG. (FM)                FT-M                  MIN                 AX
                                                                                    TIME STANDARD USED
                                    EQUIL.       6 7    DURATION     48 49 51 52    TIME START                       OUT
                                    HOUR         @n       (MRS.) FT-M               EQUILIBRIUM
                                                 54  55 57 58              so at               HAUL
                                    DISTANCE                         AUL r T__1
                                    F                              YYPE    I                      IN
                                    (h?A!?       I   I I  1 1
                                                 62 63 64 WTD- AVG.      65 66 67 so   MIN                -MAX
                                                          TRACE DEPTH
                                    STRATUM                   4F?0                     DESCR.

                                    WATER                  70 71 73              73 76 78
                                    TEMPERATURLS     SUK-1 I
                                    (DEGREES C.)     FACE                  GEARE771             METHOD

                                                 83  84
                                    @OTTOM
                              0     YPE          . = DESCR.
                                                 as 86 87 as               94 93 96                  97 98 99
                                    WE     OUT                     GEAR                    DOOR
                              o     ( M)                           TYPE                    ACCES
                                    AU7SAMPLE
                              00    E HOD        F]
                                                 103
                                    MJjFOR                                   WEATH@R. SEA
                                        CE                                   CONDI IONS


                              CL
                              c3    REMARKS






                                                                   Appendix Figure A
                    Haul-position form used by the National Marine Fisheries Service during bottom trawl surveys in the Bering Sea.
                                                                                 L   ITU E
                                                                                 28 29 30 31




































                                                         . . . . .    . . . . . . . . .

                               . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .


                                   . . . .    . . . . . . .


                                   . . .    . . . .    . . . .    . . . . . .
                      141,
                      v
                      A        . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .       . . . . . . . . . . . . .

                                                . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

                      cn



                      CD




                      aQ      . . . . . . . . .            . . . . . . . . . . . .      . . ... . . . .
                      cr
                                 . . . .    . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .



                                   . . . . . . .    . . . .     . . . .    . . . .    . . .














                      aq
                      cn







                       76               NOAA Technical Report NAM 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual


                                                                                                                     MARINE DEBRIS DATA FORM



                                                                                   Name:                                                                                           Date:

                                                                                   Vessel:-(-                                                     Cruise:- Haul:
                                                                                                     name              @oda

                                                                                            Percent of Catch Sampled For Marine Debris:

                                                                                                                                         ITEMS        CAUGHT


                                                                                                                                       TOW                                                                                    Twi
                                                               PLASTIC                                                                IN                                                                                    nunuw
                                                                                                                                      014-            STYR0F0AAMAA jor other plastic foaml                                   old-
                                                               bags                                                                                   War
                                                               bottles:                                                                               CUPS
                                                                   green                                                                              egg canons
                                                                   Soda                                                                               fast-food containers
                                                                   other                                                                              meat trays
                                                               caps. lids                                                                             pieces
                                                               cups, spoons, forks, straws                                                                      (specify)
                                                               diapers
                                                               disposable lighters                                                                    METAL
                                                               fishing line                                                                           beverage cam
                                                               fishing net                                                                            battle caps
                                                               ficats & lures                                                                         containers
                                                               hardhats                                                                               crabilish traps
                                                               fight sticks                                                                           55 gallon drums
                                                               milk As                                                                                   Ar-Y
                                                               rope                                                                                      new
                                                               sheeting. large                                                                        P@---
                                                               69adc holdlers                                                                         Pull tabs
                                                               Scrapping bands                                                                        wife
                                                               tampon applicators                                                                     other Ispecif)l
                                                               toys                                                                                   PAPER
                                                               vegetable sacks                                                                        bags
                                                               ..write protection-                                                                    cardboar
                                                               rings
                                                               other (specify)                                                                        CLAPS
                                                               GLASS                                                                                  newspaper
                                                               bottles                                                                                pieces
                                                               thForescer-4 light tubes                                                               other (specify)
                                                               light bulbs
                                                               pieces                                                                                 WOW (Leave driftwood an the beachl
                                                               Other IsPecify)                                                                        crab or lobster traps
                                                               RUBBER                                                                                 cram
                                                               balloons                                                                               panels
                                                               gloves                                                                                 pieces
                                                               tires                                                                                  cow Isplecify)
                                                               otheir Ispecify)                                                                       CLOTHFRAGS
                                                                                                                                                      pieces



                                                                                                                                 MARINE DEBRIS SOURCES

                                                                                   Percent foreign                                     Percent U.S.                                Percent Unknown



                                                                                                                                     ENTANGLED ANIMALS

                                                                                   Marine Debris Item                                  Type of Animal                              Number of Animals






                                                        Consiente:


                                                                                                                                Appendix Figure C
                                                                                             Marine debris data form for bottom trawls Uune 1990).






                                                                Chapter 6

                                                             Aerial Surveys



               Techniques used in other assessment problems                 two engines, is safer to use in the same areas as the
             have a potential for use in assessing marine debris            Cessna as well as over offshore areas and along rocky
             problems. The Assessment Working Group men-                    coasts.
             tioned two techniques (Ribic 1990): aerial surveys               For safety reasons, both planes should be flown at
             and remotely operated vehicles (ROVs). ROVs were               60 m or higher to reduce the effects of engine noise
             described in Chapter 5. This chapter discusses aerial          on the behavior of nearby animals. For marine mam-
             surveys.                                                       mal and marine bird surveys, typical flying elevations
                                                                            are 120-140 m. Assessments regarding optimal flying
                                                                            elevation and speed for sighting marine debris have
             General Considerations                                         not been done and will likely vary depending on sur-
                                                                            vey objectives and sighting conditions.
             Researchers havejust started   to investigate the use of         The Cessna 172 seats a pilot and two observers; the
             aircraft to collect data on large to very large debris.        Twin Otter seats up to six people. In either plane two
             Ryan (1988a) sighted large plastic objects (>200 mm            people would be needed- to make observations: one
             in diameter) from an elevation of 130 m in a light             person to observe and the other to record data. A
             aircraft during calm seas. S. Johnson (NMFS, Auke              tape recorder may be used as a backup data recorder.
             Bay, AK, pers. commun. August 1991) has used                   In the Twin Otter, there could be three people with
             aircraft to assess quantities of trawl web on some             two making observations out of opposite windows
             Alaska beaches. The major advantage of aerial sur-             while the third records the data.
             veys is that large areas can be covered by aircraft in a         Rental costs for a plane and pilot are $70-85/hour
             relatively short period of time. The disadvantage for          for the Cessna 172 and $800-900/hour for the Twin
             general use is the lack of consensus on the field              Otter (3-h minimum). If the survey takes more than
             methods and the cost of renting the aircraft. Because          I day, the pilot receives $200 per diem.
             the technique is experimental, more research on
             field design will be needed before its usefulness can
             be established. For example, there is no consensus             Aerial Photography
             on the type of aircraft to use, at what elevation or
             speed to fly, what types of debris can be seen from            Aerial photography would be useful primarily for
             the air (we expect that very large debris will be seen),       concentrations of large to very large debris.
             or what the sampling design should be. Other areas             Primarily, a photograph can be taken so that the
             to investigate include the use of aerial photography           concentration of debris can be analyzed in detail
             (see Golik and Rosenberg [1987] for tar balls) and             later. This procedure is typically done for con-
             aerial reconnaissance as a tool specifically for pilot         centrations of marine mammals such as dolphin
             studies for selecting beach or nearshore sites for             species.
             other sampling techniques discussed in Chapters 2                For aerial photography, a Twin Otter should be
             and 4.                                                         used because typically the survey planes have the
               Typical aircraft used for marine mammal surveys              camera mounts in place. A 9X9 T-11 camera can be
             are the Cessna 172 and the Twin Otter. Both are                rented for about $1,000/mo, and film for this camera
             above-wing aircraft (an airplane with the wing lo-             will cost about $1,000/roll. This type of camera is
             cated above the fuselage) with good visibility. The            suggested because of its ability to take photographs
             Cessna 172 should be used within 15 km of shore.               of large areas, with high resolution (which is in
             The Twin Otter can be used up to 320 km offshore.              part due to the negatives being 22.9                CM2)
             The Twin Otter travels at faster speeds (140-160 km/           (R. Grotefendt, Ebasco Environmental, Bellevue, WA,
             h) than does the Cessna 172 (120-140 km/h). The                pers. commun. August 1991). Similar cameras of
             Cessna has one engine and is safe to use in bays and           newer design may be used but will cost much more.
             sounds and near flat beaches. The Twin Otter, with             The camera weighs 25 kg or more and will have to be



                                                                                                                                    77







            78      NOAA Technical Report NMf`S 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
            shipped to the place of use. The cost of shipping is       Conclusion
            not covered in the monthly rental fee. The plane,          More work must be done to assess the usefulness of
            which travels at speeds greater than 140 km/h, must        aerial surveys for monitoring marine debris. Aerial
            fly higher than 60 m to get useful pictures (to pre-       photography may be particularly useful for surveying
            vent blurring of images and to cover a large enough        debris in coastal areas and on beaches where debris is
            area). The film development will be an additional          concentrated.
            cost.






                                                                   Glossary


              Accumulation rate. Amount of debris added to a                Marine debris (marine litter). Solid materials of hu-
                   sampling unit during a specified time period                  man origin that are discarded at sea or reach the
                   (usually measured after cleaning of all debris).-             sea through waterways or through domestic and
              Aerial survey. A survey made using an airplane or                  industrial outfalls (National Academy of Sciences
                   helicopter.                                                   1975).
              Assessment studies. Studies that seek to quantify             Medium debris. solid waste of human origin or
                   distribution, movement, and/or trends in the                  manufacture that is @:2.5 cm and !@10 cm.
                   type and amount of marine debris over space              Nautical mile. A measure of distance based on lati-
                   and/or time.                                                  tude and longitude; equal to 1.9 kin (abbrev-
              Backshore. Zone extending above normal high tide                   iated as "nmi").
                   level, but innundated by exceptionally high tides        Nonparametric statistical method. A statistical
                   or large waves during storms.                                 method is nonparametric if it may be used on
              Baseline studies. Studies that describe the types and              data with a nominal or ordinal scale of measure-
                   amount of debris over space and/or time to                    ment and if no assumptions are made about the
                   identify the magnitude of the marine debris                   data (i.e., distribution-free methods). Non-
                   problem.                                                      parametric methods are often used in situations
              Beach. Whole of,the area affected by normal wave                   when data describe populations that are not
                   action, extending from a depth of 10 in below                 normally distributed. Some methods are ana-
                   water level at the lowest tide to the edge of the             logues of parametric tests. Examples include. the
                   permanent coast; beaches may be composed of                   Mann-Whitney U test and the Kruskall-Wallis
                   mud, sand, gravel, boulders, and/or rock ledges.              test.
              Composite. A container made with a cardboard                  Non-reusable. A manufactured product designed
                   body and metal or plastic ends.                               for one-time use (e.g., bottle, can) on which no
              Diving survey. A survey made underwater by per-                    deposit is normally charged.
                   sonnel using scuba or snorkeling equipment.              Oceanic influences. A factor affecting a marine de-
              Fiberboard. Thick brown cardboard that may be                      bris survey that is related. to physical oceano-
                   used to package cases of cans.                                graphic processes such as tides and currents.
              Fishing gear. Any physical item or combination of             Open top cans. Completely sealed cans with no
                   items that is placed in the water for the intended            reclosable lid that may be opened with a can
                   purpose of capturing or controlling for subse-                opener or have pull-off ends.
                   quent capture, living marine or aquatic organ-           Parametric statistical method. A statistical method
                   isms (Coe 1986).                                              derived by assuming a specified theoretical
              Foreshore. A zone that includes that part of the                   model for the the data. The most common theo-
                   beach regularly covered and uncovered by high                 retical model used is the normal distribution.
                   tides.                                                        Many parametric tests have nonparametric ana-
              Gill net. Lightweight singlestrand or multistrand                  logues. Examples include the t-test and F-test.
                   filament netting (Cole et al. 1990).                     Population of interest. All or a selected type of de-
              Gillnet floats. Small elongated rigid foamed floats                bris within an area defined in     space and time
                   that are grooved and have four holes for attach-              and about which an inference is to be made.
                   ment to the "cork line" of a gill net (Cole et al.       Primary packaging. Any package that is in direct
                   1990).                                                        contact with the product and without which the
              Knot. A measure of speed equal to nautical miles                   product normally would not be sold.
                   per hour.                                                Quality assurance program plan. An orderly collec-
              Laminate. - A material made up of two or more com-                 tion of detailed and specific operational pro-
                   ponents.                                                      cedures that delineate how a project will be
              Landbased debris. Solid materials of human origin                  implemented and what quality control @ proce-
                   that reach the sea through waterways, domestic                dures will be employed to ensure that data of
                   and industrial outfalls, or improper disposal on              known and acceptable quality will be generated;
                   beaches.                                                      it further specifies how data will be evaluated to
              Large debris. Solid waste of human origin or manu-                 ensure that it meets specified project goals
                   facture that is >10 cm and!@I in.                             (Verner 1990).


                                                                                                                                    79







             80     NOAA Technical Report NWS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
             Returnable. The general term used for a beverage               Small debris. Solid waste of human origin or manu-
                 container that is intended to be reused or re-                  facture that is <2.5 cm.
                 cycled.                                                    Standing stock. Amount of material found in the
             Sample mean. A measure of central tendency; the                     sampling unit at a specified time.
                 average of the measurements.                               Statistical hypothesis. A statement about a popula-
                                                                                 tion parameter that a researcher is interested in
                                                                                 testing; the most usual parameters of interest are
                                     X=-
                                          n                                      population means or changes in population
                                                                                 means.
             Sample variance. A measure of spread; the average              Statistical power. The probability of rejecting a null
                 squared deviation of the observations from their                hypothesis when that hypothesis is false. Used in
                 mean:                                                           trend assessment studies to determine the num-
                                                            (unbiased            ber of survey units to be used. Typically, a power
                                   S2   (Xi -                formula)            of 75% or more is used in sample size calcula-
                                         n -                                     tions.
                                                                            Stratification. The use of additional information to
             Sampling frame. A listing of all possible sampling                  divide the sampling frame into non-overlapping
                 units that can be defined in the target popula-                 groups and then selecting a simple random
                 tion; the sampling units used in the survey are                 sample from each group. Use of stratification
                 randomly or systematically chosen from the sam-                 may produce a gain in precision in the param-
                 pling frame.                                                    eter estimates.
             Sampling unit. A defined area on which a measure-              Systematic survey. A survey design that follows a
                 ment will be taken.                                             rule for choosing the sampling units. For ex-
             Sea state. A code combining information on wind,                    ample, after a random starting point is chosen,
                 waves, and swell height to describe oceanic con-                every kth sampling unit is used. Often used with
                 ditions; numbered from 0 to 9. The most useful                  a grid to sample a large geographic area.
                 in marine debris surveys are sea states 0 through          Target population. The difference between the
                 4, with sea states of 5 or greater being used for               population of interest and any restricted-access
                 severe conditions (i.e., gales). Sea states (SS) 0              areas within the population of interest. If there
                 through 4 are as follows:                                       are no restrictions, the target population and the
                 SS 0 = sea like a mirror; winds <1 nmi; average                 population of interest are the same.
                    wave height is 0 m.                                     Transect. The linear sampling unit on a beach or in
                 SS I = a smooth sea; ripples, very light winds;                 the open water of known length, Width may or
                    average wave h .eight 0-0.3 m.                               may not be defined. For strip transects, width is
                 SS 2 = a slight sea; small wavelets; winds light to             fixed; for line transects, width is not fixed.
                    gentle; average wave height 0.3-0.6 m.                  Trawl/seine web. Twisted or braided fishing net
                 SS 3 = a moderate sea; large wavelets, crests be-               (Cole et a]. 1990).
                    ginning to break; winds gentle to moderate;             Trawl survey. A survey made using a boat that pulls
                    average wave height 0.6-1.2 m.                               a net at set depths in the water column (e.g.,
                 SS 4 = a rough sea; moderate waves; whitecaps;                  surface, mid-water, bottom).
                    winds moderate to strong breeze; average wave           Very large debris. Solid waste     of human origin or
                                                                                 manufacture that is >1 m.
                    height 1.2-2.4 M.                                       Vessels of opportunity. A ship      dedicated to a pur-
                 (from Duxbury and Duxbury 1984).                                pose not related to studying debris but which
             Secondary packaging. Packaging used to collate                      allows researchers to conduct debris studies that
                 multiples of other containers, usually used while               do not conflict with the ship's primary purpose.
                 transporting goods.                                        Vessel-source debris. Solid materials of human ori-
             Shore. The zone between the water's edge at nor-                    gin which were discarded at sea.
                 mal low tide and the shoreward limit of effective          < Less than.
                 wave action.                                               >    Greater than.
             Shoreward limit of wave action. The landward limit             <_   Less than or equal to.
                 of effective wave action that generally occurs on               Greater than or equal to.
                 the upper foreshore and usually is identified by a
                 pronounced concentration of debris.






                              List q cronyms


              EPA      Environmental Protection Agency
              FAO      Food and Agricultural Organization (of the United Nations)
              10C      Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (of UNESCO)
              GIPME    Global Investigation of Pollution in the Marine Environment
              CMC      Center for Marine Conservation
              MARIPOL  International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships
              NMML     National Marine Mammal Laboratory
              IM0      International Maritime Organization
              NOAA     National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
              ROV      remote operating vehicle
              CPLTE    catch per unit effort












































                                                                    81







                                                                                      Citaftom


                  Ainley, D. G., W. R. Fraser, and L. B. Spear.                                   Bakkala, R. G., and K. Wakabayashi, eds.
                       1990a. The incidence of plastic in the diets of Antarctic sea-                  1985. Results of the cooperative U.S.-Japan groundfish inves-
                          birds. In Proceedings of the second international confer-                      tigations in the Bering Sea during May@August 1979. Int.
                          ence on,marine debris, 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S.                     North Pacific Fisheries Comm., Vancouver, Canada, 249 p.
                          Sbomuia and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 682-691. NOAA                      Balazs, G. H.
                          Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                    1979. Synthetic debris observed on a Hawaiian monk seal.
                  Ainley, D. G., L. B. Spear, and C. A. Ribic.                                           'Elepaio U. Hawaiian Audubon Soc.) 40:43-44.
                       1990b. The incidence of plastics in the diets of pelagic sea-                   1985. Impact of ocean debris on marine turtles: entangle-
                          birds in the eastern equatorial Pacific region. In Proceed-                    ment and ingestion. In Proceedings of the workshop on the
                          ings of the second international conference on marine de-                      fate and impact of marine debris; 27-29 November 1984,
                          bris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M.                       Honolulu, HI. NOAA Tech. Memo., NMFS, NOAA-TM-
                          L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 653-664. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS,                          NMFS-SWFC-54.
                          NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                                 Baltz, D. M., and G. V. Morejohn.
                  Andersen, N.R., R. Dawson, and G. Kullenberg.                                        1976. Evidence from seabirds of plastic particle pollution off
                       1986. The program of Global Investigation of Pollution in                         central California. Western Birds 7:111-112.
                          the Marine Environment (GIPME) of the Intergovern-                      Barnard, J .., W. Myers, J. Pearce, F. Ramsey, M. Sissenwine, and
                          mental Oceanographic Commission (IOC). Mar. Tech. Soc.                    W. Smith.
                          J. 20:21-28.                                                                 1985. Surveys for monitoring changes and trends in renew-
                  Andre, J. B., and R. Ittner.                                                           able resources: forests and marine fisheries. The American
                       1980. Hawaiian monk seal entangled in fishing net.                                Statistician 39:363-373.
                          'Elepaio U. Hawaiian Audubon Soc.) 41:51.                               Bayer, R. D., and R. E. Olson.
                  Anonymous.
                       1981. Nylon thread pollution. Mar. Poll. Bull. 12:397.                          1988. Plastic particles in 3 Oregon fulmars. Oregon Birds
                  Atwood, D. K., F. J. Burton, J. E. Corredor, G. R. Harvey, A. J. Mata-               / 14:155-156.
                    Jimenez, A. Vasquez-Botello, and B. A. Wade.                                  Bean, M. J.
                       1987a. Results of the CARIPOL petroleum pollution moni-                         1984. United States and international authorities applicable
                          toring project in the wider Caribbean. Mar. Pollut. Bull.                      to entanglement of marine mammals and other organisms
                          18:540-548.                                                                    in lost or discarded fishing gear and other debris. Rep. to
                  Atwood, D. K, H. H. Cummings, W. J. Nodal, and R. C. Cul-                              Mar. Mamm. Comm. Washington, D.C., 56 p.
                     bertson.                                                                          1987.   Legal strategies for reducing persistent plastics
                       1987b. The CARIPOL petroleum pollution monitoring                                 in the marine environment. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 18(6B):
                          project and the CARIPOL petroleum pollution data-                              357-360.
                          base. Caribbean Jour. Sci. 23:1-3.                                      Berger, J. D., and C. E. Armistead.
                  Atwood, D. IC, F.J. Burton,J. E. Corredor, G. R. Harvey, A. J. Mata-                 1987. Discarded net material in Alaskan waters, 1982-84.
                    Jimenez, A. Vasquez-Botello, and B. A. Wade.                                         NOAA Tech. Memo., NMFS F/NWC-1 10.
                       1987c. Petroleum pollution in the Caribbean. Oceanus                       Bigg, M. A.
                          30:25-32.                                                                    1979. Incidence of adult northern fur seals entangled in de-
                  Augerot, X.                                                                            bris on St. Paul Island, 1978. Background paper submitted
                       1988. Plastic in the ocean: what are we doing to clean it                         to the 22nd Annual Meeting of the Standing Scientific Com-
                          up? Washington Sea Grant Marine Advisory Services, Univ.                       mittee, North Pacific Fur Seal Commission, 9-13 April 1979,
                          Washington, Seattle, WA, 8 p.                                                  Washington, D.C., Pacific Biological Station, Nanaimo, Brit-
                  Austin, H. M., and P. M. Stoop-Glas.                                                   ish Columbia V9R SK6, Canada, 6 p.
                       1977. The distribution of polystyrene spheres and nibs in                       1982. Sizes of scrap fishnet and plastic packing bands from
                          Block Island Sound during 1972-1973. Chesapeake Sci.                           western Vancouver Island during August-September
                          18:89-92.                                                                      1982. Background paper submitted to the 26th Annual
                  Azzarello, M. Y., and E. S. Van Vleet.                                                 Meeting of the Standing Scientific Committee, North Pa-
                       1987. Marine birds and plastic pollution. Mar. Ecol. Prog.                        cific Fur Seal Commission, 28-29 March 1983, Washington
                          Ser. 37:295-303.                                                               D.C. Pacific Biological Station, Nanaimo,, British Columbia
                  Baba, N., K Yoshida, M. Onoda, N. Nagai, and S. Toishi.                                V9R SK6, Canada, 4 p.
                       1988. Results of research on floating fishing gear and fish                Bingel, F., D. Avsar, and M. Onsal.
                          net fragments in the area southwest of the Pribilof Islands
                          and off southern coasts of the Aleutian Islands, July-August                 1987. A note on plastic materials in trawl catches in the
                          1985. In Proceedings of the North Pacific Rim fisherman's                      north-eastern Mediterr   anean. Meeresforsch 31:227-2.33.
                          conference on marine debris; 13-16 October 1987, Kailua-                Bond, S. L
                          Kona, HI (D. L. Alverson and J. A. June, eds.), p. 143-                      1971. Red phalarope mortality in Southern California.
                          164. Natural Resources Consultants, Seattle, WA.                               Calif. Birds 2:97.
                  Baba, N., M. Kiyota, and K. Yoshida.                                            Bonner, W. N., and T. S. McCann.
                       1990. Distribution of marine debris and northern fur seals in                   1982. Neck collars on fur seals, Arctocephalus gazella, at South
                          the eastern Bering Sea. In Proceedings of the second inter-                    Georgia. Br. Antarct. Surv. Bull..57:73-77.
                          national conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989,                   Bourne, W. R. P.
                          Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey eds.),                         1983. Reappraisal of the threats to seabirds. Mar., Pollut.
                          p. 419-430. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                               Bull. 14:1-2.
                          SWFSC-154.                                                                   1985. Turtles and pollution. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 16:177-178.


                                                                                                                                                                        83







              84         NOAA Technical Report NMFN 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual

              Bourne, W. R. P. (chair).                                                       Cawthorn, M. W.
                   1990. Report of the working group on entanglement of ma-'                       1985. Entanglement in and      ingestion of plastic litter by ma-
                      rine life. In Proceedings of the second international con-                     rine mammals, sharks,         and turtles in New Zealand
                      ference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI,                        waters. In Proceedings of the workshop on the fate and
                      (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, ed,-?.), p. 1207-1215.                       impact of marine debris, 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu
                      NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                 HI (R.S. Shomura and H.O. Yoshida, eds.), p. 336-
             .Bourne I W. R. P., and M. J. Imber.                                                    343. NOAA Tech Memo. NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFS-54.
                   1982. Plastic pellets collected by a prion on Gough Island,                     1989. Impacts of marine debris on wildlife in New Zealand
                      central South Atlantic Ocean. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 13:20-21.                     coastal waters: Marine debris in New Zealand's coastal wa-
              Brockwell, P.J., and R. A. Davis.                                                      ters; proceedings of the national workshop on marine de-
                   1989. Time series: theory and methods. Springer-Verlag,                           bris, Department of Conservation, 9 March 1989,
                      New York. 519 p.                                                               Wellington.
              Burnham, K_ P., and D. R. Anderson.                                             CEE (Center for Environmental Education).
                   1984. The need for distance         data in transect counts. J.                 1986. Marine wildlife entanglement in North Amer-
                      Wildl. Manage. 48:1248-1254.                                                   ica. Center for Environmental Education, Washington
              Burnham, K. P., D. R. Anderson, andj. L. Laake.                                        D.C. 219 pp.
                   1980. Estimation of density from line transect sampling of                      1987a. Plastics in the ocean: more than a litter prob-
                      biological populations. Wildl. Monogr. 72.                                     lem. Center for Environmental Education, Washington
                   1985. Efficiency and bias in strip and line transect sampling.                    D.C. 128 pp.
                      J. Wildl. Manage. 49:1012-1018.                                              1987b. 1986 Texas coastal cleanup report. Center for Envi-
              Butler,J. N., and B. F. Morris.                                                        ronmental Education, Washington, D.C. 56 p.
                   1974. Quantitative monitoring and variability of pelagi`c tar                   1988. Texas coastal cleanup report. Center for Environ-
                      in the North Atlantic. In Marine pollution monitoring (pe-                     mental Education, Washington, D.C. 105 pp.
                      troleum), proceedings of a symposium and workshop held                  CMC (Center for Marine Conservation).
                      at NBS, 13-17 May 1974, Gaithersburg, Maryland. NBS                          1991. Cleaning North America's beaches, 199.0 beach
                      Spec. publ. 409.                                                               cleanup results. Center for Marine Conservation, Wash-
              Caddy, J. R.                                                                           ington, D.C. 291 p.
                   1976. Practical considerations for quantitative estimation of              Clark, R. B.
                      benthos from a submersible. In Underwater research (E.A.                     1986. Marine pollution. Clarendon Press, Oxford. 215 pp.
                      Drew, J. T@. Lythgoe, and J. D. Woods, eds.), p. @85-                   Coe, J. M.
                      298. Academic Press Inc., N-Y.                                               1986. Derelict fishing gear: disaster or nuisance? M.A. thesis,
              Calkins, D. G.                                                                         Univ. of Wash., Seattle, WA. 79 p.
                   1985. Stellar sea lion entanglement in marine debris. In Pro-              Cole, C. Andrew, John P. Kumer, David A. Manski, and Daniel V.
                      ceedings of the workshop on the fate and impact of marine                 Richards (eds).
                      debris; 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu, HI (R. S.                             1990. Annual report of National Park Marine Debris Moni-
                      Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 308-314. NOAA                             toring Program: 1989 marine debris Survey. Tech. Report
                      Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFC-54.                                        NPS/NRV%rV/NRTR-90/04.
              Carpenter, E.J.                                                                 Coleman, F. C., and D. H. S. Wehle.
                   1976. Plastics, pelagic tar, and other litter. In Strategies for                1984. Plastic pollution: a world-wide problem. Parks 9:9-
                      marine pollution monitoring (E.D. Goldberg, ed.) p. 77-                        12.
                      89. John Wiley and Sons. NY.                                            Colton,]. B., Jr.
              Carpenter, E.J., and K. L. Smith,jr.                                                 1974. Plastics in the ocean. Oceanus 18:61-64.
                   -.1972. Plastics on the Sargasso Sea surface. Science                      Colton, J. B., Jr., F. D. Knapp, and B. R. Burns.
                      175:1240-1241.                                                               1974. Plastic particles in surface waters of the northwestern
              Carpenter, E. J., S. J. Anderson, G. R. Harvey, H. P. Miklas, and B.                   Atlantic. Science 185:491-497.
                 B. Peck.                                                                     Conant, S.
                   1972. Polystyrene spherules in coastal waters. Science                          1984. Man-made debris and marine wildlife in the North-
                      178:749-750.                                                                   western Hawaiian Islands. 'Elepaio I (J. Hawaiian Audubon
              Carr, A.                                                                               Soc.) 44:87-88.
                   1986. Rips, FADS, and little loggerheads. BioScience                       Connors, P. G., and K. G. Smith.
                      36:92-100.                                                                   1982. Oceanic plastic particle pollution: suspected effect on
                   1987. Impact of non-degradable marine debris on the ecol-                         fat deposition in red phalaropes. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 13:
                      ogy and survival outlook of sea turtles. Mar. Pollut. Bull.                    18-20.
                      18(6B):352-356.                                                         Conover, W. J.
              Carr, A. H., E. H. Amaral, A. W. Hulbert, and R. Cooper.                             1980. Practical nonparametric statistics. John Wiley and
                                                                                                     Sons, NY, 493 p.
                   1985. Underwater survey of simulated lost demersal and lost                Corredor, J. E., D. K_ Atwood, A. Mata, and A. Vasquez-Botello
                      commercial gill nets off New England. In Proceedings of                   (eds.).
                      the workshop on the fate and impact of marine debris,                        1987. Proceedings of the CARIPOL symposium on research
                      27-29 November 1984, Honolulu, HI (R.S. Shomura and                            and monitoring of petroleum pollution in the Caribbean
                      H.O. Yoshida, eds.), p. 439-447. NOAA Tech. Memo.                              Sea and Adjacent Regions convened in La Parguera, Puerto
                      NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFC-54.                                                    Rico, 2-6 December 1985. Caribbeanjour. Sci. 23(l).
              Caulton, E., and M. Mocogni.                                                    Crittenden, R. N.
                   1987. Preliminary studies of man-made litter in the Firth of                    1989. Abundance estimation based on echo counts. Ph.D.
                      Forth, Scotland. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 18(6B):446-450.                            dissertation, Univ. Washington, Seattle, 169 p.







                                                                                                                                                              -citatiow            85

                  Croxall, J.                                                                           Dixon, T. R., and A. J. Cooke.
                      .1990. Impact of incidental mortality on Antarctic marine                              1977. Discarded containers on a Kent beach. Mai. Pollut.
                          vertebrates. Antarctic Science 2: 1.                                                 Bull. 8:105-109.
                  Croxall,J,  P., S. Rodwell, and I. L. Boyd.                                           Dixon, T. R., and A. J. Dixon.
                       1990. Entanglement in man-made debris of Antarctic fur                                1980. Marine litter surveillance at two sites on the western
                          seals at Bird Island, South Georgia. Marine Mammal Sci-                              Cherbourg Peninsula and westjutland shores of the English
                          ence 6:221-233.                                                                      Channel and southern North Sea. Marine Litter Research
                  Cundell, A. M.                                                                               Programme, Stage 2. The Tidy Britain Group, The Pier
                  -    1973. Plastic materials accumulating in            Narragansett Bay.                    Wagen, Great Britain, 80 p.
                          Mar. Pollut. Bull. 4:187-188.                                                 Dixon, T.R., and T.J. Dixon
                  Dahlberg, M. L., and R. H. Day.                                                            1981a. Marine litter surveillance. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 12:289-295.
                       1985. Observations of man-made objects on the surface of                              1981b. Aeolian Sky. packaged chemicals pollution inci-
                          the North Pacific Ocean. In Proceedings of the workshop                              dent. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 12:53-56.
                          on the fate and impact of marine debris, V-29 November                             1983. Marine litter surveillance on the North Atlantic Ocean
                          1984, Honolulu, HI, (R.S. Shomura and H.O. Yoshida, eds.)                            shores of Portugal and the Western Isles of Scotland. Ma-
                          p. 198-212. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                                     rine Litter Research Programme, Stage 5. The Tidy Britain
                          SWFC-54.                                                                             Group, the Pier Wagen, Great Britain, 70 p.
                  Dart, J. K G., and P. S. Rainbow.                                                          1986. Packaged dangerous goods washed on to beaches of
                       1976. Some underwater techniques for estimating echino-                                 England and Wales. The Environmentalist 6:209-218.
                          derm populations. In Underwater research (E. A. Drew, J.                      Dixon, T. R. and C. Hawksley.
                          N. Lythgoe, and J. D. Woods, eds.), p. 302-312. Academic                           1980. Litter on the beaches of the British Isles. Report of the
                          Press Inc., NY.                                                                      First National Shoreline Litter Survey sponsored by The Sun-
                  Day, R. H.                                                                                   day Times. Marine Litter Research Programme, Stage 3, The
                                                                                                               Tidy Britain Group, 70 P.
                       1980. The occurrence and characteristics of plastic pollution                    Doubleday, W. G. and D. Rivard (eds.).
                          in Alaska's marine birds. M.S. thesis, Univ. Alaska, Fair-                         1981. Bottom trawl surveys: proceedings of a workshop; 12-
                          banks. I I I p.                                                                      14 November 1980, Ottawa, Canada. Can. Spec. Publ. Fish.
                  Day, R. H., and D. G. Shaw.                                                                  Aquat. Sci. 58, 273 p.
                       1987. Patterns in the abundance of pelagic plastic and tar in                    Duerr, C.
                          the North Pacific Ocean, 1976-1985. Mar. Pollut. Bull.                             1980. Plastic is forever: our nondegradable treasures.
                          18(6B):31 1-316.                                                                     Oceans, November 1980:59-60.
                  Day, R. H., D. G. Shaw, and S. E. Ignell.                                             Duronslet, M.J., D. B. Revera, and K M. Stanley.
                       1990a. The quantitative distribution and characteristics of                           1991. Marine debris and sea turtle strandings on beaches of the
                          marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean, 1984-88. In                                upper Texas and southwestern Louisiana coasts, June 1987
                          Proceedings of the second international conference on ma-                            through September 1989. NOAA Tech. Memo NMFS-SEFC.
                          rine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura                      Duxbury, A.C., and A. Duxbury.
                          and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 182-211. NOAA Tech. Memo.                             1984. An introduction to the world's ocean. Addison
                          NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                                        Wesley Pub]. Co., Menlo Park, CA; Reading, MA, 408 p.
                       1990b. The quantitative distribution           and characteristics of            FAO.
                          neuston plastic in the North Pacific Ocean, 1984-88. In                            1989. Report of the IOC/FAO/UNEP review meeting on the
                          Proceedings of the second international conference on ma-                            persistent synthetic materials pilot survey; 12-14junq 1989,
                          rine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S.- Shomura                            Haifa, Israel, 46 p.
                          and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 247-266. NOAA Tech. Memo.                        Feder, H. M., S. C. Jewett, and J. R. Hilsinger.
                          NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                                      1978. Man-made debris on the, Bering Sea fioor. Mar.
                  Day, R. H.', D@ H. S. Wehte, and F. C. Coleman.                                              Pollut. Bull. 9:52-53.
                       1985. Ingestion of plastic pollutants by marine birds. In                        Fowler, C. W.
                          Proceedings of the workshop on the fate and impact of ma-                          1982. Entanglement as an explanation for the decline in
                          rine debris; 27-29 November 1984, HI (R. S. Shomura and                              northern fur seals of the Pribilof Islands.' Background pa-
                          H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 344-386. NOAA Tech. memo.                                   per submitted to the 25th Annual Meeting of the Standing
                          NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFC-54.                                                          Scientific Committee of the North Pacific Fur Seal Commis-
                  Dean, T.                                                                                     sion, 9-13 April 1984, Moscow, U.S.S.R. NOAA, National
                       1985. Plastic hazards to birds. Br. Birds. 78:661-662.                                  Marine Mammal Lab., 7600 Sand Point Way N,E., Seattle,
                  DeGange, A. R., and T. C. Newby.                                                             WA 98115, 24 p.
                       1980. Mortality of seabirds and fish in a lost salmon drift-                          1984. Entanglement in fishing debris as a contributing factor
                                                                                                               in the decline of northern fur seals on the Pribilof Islands.
                          net. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 11:322-323.                                                  Background     Ipaper submitted to the 27th Annual Meeting of
                  Dickerman, R. W., and R. G. Goelet.'                                                         the Standing Scientific Committee of the North Pacific
                       1987. Northern Gannet starvation              after swallowing styro-                   Fur Seal Commission, 9-13 April 1984, Moscow, U.S.S.R.
                          foam. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 18:293.                                                     NOA,4@, National Marine Mammal Lab., 7600 Sand Point
                  Dixon, T.J., and T. R. Dixon.                                                                Way N.E., Seattle, WA 98115, 33 p.
                       1983. Marine litter distribution          and composition in the                      1985. An evaluation of the role of entanglement in the
                          North Sea. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 14:145-148.                                            population dynamics of northern fur seals on the Pribilof
                  Dixon, T. R.                                                                                 Islands. In Proceedings of the workshop on the fate and
                       1981. Danger on the beach. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 12:3.                                     impact of marine debris; 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu,
                       1997. More reports of dangerous packages and muni-                                      HI (R.S. Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), 'p. 291-
                          tions. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 18:146.                                                    307. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFC-54.







                 86         NCIAA Technical Report NMIFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual

                      1987. Marine debris and northern fur seals: a case study.                    Gosliner, M.
                         Mar. Pollut. Bull. 18(6B):326--335.                                             1985. Legal authorities pertinent to entanglement by marine
                      1988. A review of seal and sea lion entanglement in marine                           debris. In Proceedings of the workshop on the fate and
                         fishing debris. In Proceedings of the North Pacific Rim                           impact of marine debris; 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu,
                         fisherman's conference on marine debris;.13-16 October                            HI (R. S. Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida), p. 15-33. NOAA
                         1987, Kailua-Kona, HI (D. L. Alverson and J. A. June, eds.),                      Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-NMFS-SWFC-54.
                         p. 16-63. Natural Resources Consultants, Seattle, WA.                     Gould, P. J., and D. J. Forsell.
                 Fowler, C. W., and T. R. Merrell.                                                       1989. Techniques for shipboard surveys of marine birds.
                      1986. Victims of plastic technology. Alaska Fish and Game                            U.S. Fish Wild]. Serv. Tech. Rep. 25. Washington, D.C.,
                         18:34-37.                                                                         22 p.
                 Fowler, C. W. and T. J. Ragen.                                                    Gramentz, D.
                      1990. Entanglement studies, St. Paul Island, 1989 juvenile                         1988. Involvement of loggerhead turtle with the plastic,
                         male northern fur seals. NMFS, Northwest and Alaska                               metal, and hydrocarbon pollution in the Central Med-
                         Fisheries Centers NWAFC Processed Report 90-06.                                   iterranean. Mar. Poll. Bull. 19:11-13.
                 Fowler, C. W., R. Merrick, and N. Baba.                                           Gregory, M. R.
                      1989. Entanglement studies, St. Paul Island, 1988 juvenile                         1977. Plastic pellets on New Zealand beaches. Mar. Pollut.
                         male roundups. NMFS, Northwest and Alaska Fisheries                               Bull. 8:82-84.
                         Centers NWAFC Processed Report 89-01.                                           .1978a. Accumulation and distribution of virgin plastic gran-
                 Fowler, C. W., R. Merrick, andj. D. Baker.                                                ules on New Zealand beaches. N.Z.J. of Marine and Fresh-
                      1990. Studies of the population level effects of entanglement                        water Research 12:399-414.
                         on northern fur seals. In Proceedings of the second inter--                     1978b. Virgin plastic granules on southwest Pacific beaches
                         national conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Ho-                         and their possible environmental implications. Tenth Int.
                         nolulu, HI (R.S. Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 291-                        Congress on Sedimentology 1:270-271.
                         307. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                                       1983. Virgin plastic granules on some beaches of eastern
                         SWFSC-154.                                                                        Canada and Bermuda. Marine Environ. Res. 10:73-92.
                 Fry, D. M., S. I. Fefer, and L. Sileo.                                                  1987. Plastics and other seaborne litter on the shores of New
                      1987. Ingestion of plastic debris by Laysan albatrosses and                          Zealand's subantarctic islands. New Zealand Antarctic
                         wedge-tailed shearwaters in the Hawaiian Islands. Mar.                            Record 7:32-47.
                         Pollut. Bull. 18(6B):339-343.                                                   1990. Plastics: accumulation, distribution, and environmen-
                 Furness, B. L.                                                                            tal effects of meso-, macro-, and megalitter in surface waters
                      1983. Plastic particles in three Procellarifform seabirds from                       and on shores of the southwest Pacific. In Proceedings of
                         the Benguela Current, South Africa. Mar. Pollut. Bull.                            the second international conference on marine debris; 2-7
                                                                                                           April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Sbomura and M. L.
                         14:307-308.
                 Furness, R. W.                                                                            Godfrey), p. 55-84. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-
                      1985a. Plastic particle pollution: accumulation by Pro-                              TM-N.MFS-SWFSC-154.
                         cellariiform seabirds at Scottish colonies. Mar. Pollut. Bull.            Gregory, M. R., R. M. Kirk, and M. C. G. Mabin.
                         16:103-106.                                                                     1984. Pelagic tar, oil, plastics and other litter in the surface
                      1985b. Ingestion of plastic particles by seabirds at Gough Is-                       waters of the New Zealand Sector of the Southern Ocean,
                         land, South Atlantic Ocean. Environ. Poll. (Series A)                             and on Ross Dependency shores. N.Z.J. Ant. Res. 6:12-28.
                         38:261-272.                                                               Harper, P. C., andj. A. Fowler.
                 Garner,J.                                                                               1987. Plastic pellets in New Zealand storm-killed prions
                      1967. Modern deep sea trawling gear. Fishing News                                    (Pachyptila spp.). Notornis 34:65-70.
                         (Books) Ltd., London.                                                     Hays, H. and G. Cormons.
                 Gerrodette, T.                                                                          1974. Plastic particles found in tern pellets, on coastal
                      1985. Toward a population dynamics of marine debris. In                              beaches and at factory sites. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 5:44-46.
                         Proceedings of the workshop on the fate and impact of                     HMEPA (Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association).
                         marine debris; 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu, HI (R. S.                         1991. Public awareness campaign to limit garbage pollution
                         Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 508-518. NOAA                                of the Greek seas and beaches. Final rep. MEDSPA-89-1/
                         Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-NMFS-SWFC-54.                                              GR/008/GR/S, Mediterrean Special Action Programme for
                 Gilbert, R. 0.                                                                            the Environment of the European Communities.
                      1987. Statistical methods for environmental pollution mon-                   Henderson, J. R.
                         itoring. Van Nostrand Reinhold Company. NY.                                     1984. Encounters of Hawaiian monk seals with fishing gear
                 Golik, A.                                                                                 at Lisianski Island, 1982. Mar. Fish. Rev. 46:59-61.
                      1982. The distribution and behaviour of tar balls along the                        1985. A review of Hawaiian monk seal. entanglements in ma-
                         Israeli coast. Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Sci. 15:267-276.                       rine debris. In Proceedings of the workshop on the fate
                 Golik, A., and Y. Gertner.                                                                and impact of marine debris; 27-29 November 1984, Hono-
                      1990. Solid waste       on the Israeli coast - composition,                          lulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 326-
                                                                                                           335. NOAA Tech Memo. NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFS-54.
                         sources, and management. In Proceedings of the second                           1988. Marine debris in Hawaii. In Proceedings of the
                         international conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989,                        North Pacific Rim fisherman's conference on marine de-
                         Honolulu, HI (R.S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey), p. 369-                            bris; 13-16 October 1987, Kailua-Kona, HI. Natural Re-
                         378. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                                         sources Consultants, Seattle, WA.
                         SWFSC-154.                                                                      1990. Recent entanglements of Hawaiian monk seals in ma-
                 Golik, A. and N. Rosenberg.                                                               rine debris. In Proceedings of the second international
                      1987. Quantitative evaluation of beach stranded tar                                  conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI,
                         balls by means of air photographs. Mar. Pollut. Bull.
                                                                                                           p. 540-553. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-
                         18:289-293.-                                                                      SWFSC-154.







                                                                                                                                                               Citations           87

                   Henderson, J. R., and M. B. Pillos.                                                          mitted to the International North Pacific Fisheries Commis-
                        1985. Accumulation of net fragments and other marine de-                                sion, Anchorage, AK, November 1986, NWAFC, NMFS,
                           bris in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands (Abstract only).                           NOAA, Auke Bay Lab., P. 0. Box 210155, Auke Bay, AK_
                           In Proceedings of the workshop on the fate and impact of                             99821, 15 p.
                           marine debris; 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu, HI (R. S.                      IOC (Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission)
                           Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 326-335. NOAA                                1984. Manual for monitoring oil and dissolved/dispersed pe-
                           Tech Memo. NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFS-54.                                                     troleum hydrocarbons in marine waters and on beaches;
                   Henderson, J. R., S. L. Austin, and M, B. Pillos.                                            Procedures for the petroleum component of the IOC Ma-
                        1987. Summary of webbing and net fragments found on                                     rine Pollution Monitoring System (MARPOLMON - P).
                           northwestern Hawaiian Islands beaches, 1982-1986.                                    UNESCO Manuals and Guides No. 13, 35 p.
                           NOAA, NMFS, SWFC Admin. Rep. H-87-11,15 p.                                   Isaaks  E. H., and R. M. Srivastava.
                   Heneman, B., and the Centerfor Environmental Education.                                   1;89. An introduction to applied geostatistics. Oxford
                        1988. Persistent marine debris in the North Sea, northwest                              Univ. Press. NY.
                           Atlantic ocean, wider Caribbean area, and the west coast of                  Jewett, S. C.
                           Baja California. Unpubl. rep. to the Marine Mammal                                1976. Pollutants of the Northeast Gulf of Alaska. Mar.
                           Commission and National Ocean Pollution Program Office,                              Pollut. Bull. 7:169.
                           NOAA, USDC, Contr. Rep. MM3309598-5,.                                        Johnson, S. W.
                   Heyerdahl, T.                                                                             1988. Deposition of entanglement debris on Alaskan
                        1971. Atlantic Ocean pollution and biota observed by the                                beaches. In Proceedings of the North Pacific Rim
                           'Ra' Expeditions. Biol. Conservation 3:164-167.                                      fisherman's conference on marine debris, 13-16 October
                   High, W. L.                                                                                  1987, Kailua-Kona, HI (D. L. Averson and J. A. June, eds.),
                        1985. Some consequences of lost fish          *ing gear. In Proceed-
                           ings of the workshop on the fate and impact of marine de-                            p. 207-231. Natural Resources Consultants, Seattle, WA.
                           bris: 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura                            1989. Deposition, fate, and characteristics of derelict trawl
                           and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 430-437. NOAA Tech Memo.                                web on an Alaskan beach. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 20:164-168.
                           NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFS-54.                                                             1990a. Distribution, abundance, and source of entanglement
                   Hirsch, R. M., andj. R. Slack.                                                               debris and other plastics on Alaskan beaches, 1982-88. In
                        1984. A nonparametric trend test for seasonal data with se-                             Proceedings of the second international conference on ma-
                           rial dependence. Water Resources Research 20:727-732.                                rine debrisj 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura
                   Hirsch, R. M.j R. Slack, and R. A. Smith.                                                    and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 331-348. NOAA Tech. Memo.
                        1982. Techniques of trend analysis for monthly water quality                            NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.
                           data. Water Resources Research 18:107-121.                                        1990b. Entanglement debris on Alaskan beaches, 1989.
                   Hiscock, K.                                                                                  NWAFC Processed Report 90-10. 16 p.
                        1987. Subtidal rock and shallow sediments using diving. In                      Johnson, S. W., and T. R. Merrell.
                           Biological surveys of estuaries and coasts U. M. Baker and                        1988. Entanglement debris on Alaskan beaches, 1986.
                           W. J. Wolfe, eds.), p. 198-237. Cambridge United Publish-                            NOAA Tech. Memo., NMFS, F/NWC-126.26 p.
                           ing, Cambridge.                                                              Jones, L. L., and R. C. Ferrero.
                        1989. Development of methods for surveys and monitoring                              1985. Observations of net debris and associated entangle-
                           using diving. Progress in Underwater Science 13:57-64.                               ments in the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea, 1978-
                   Hjelmeland, K., B. H. Pedersen, and E. M. Nilssen.                                           84. In Proceedings of the workshop on the fate and impact
                        1988. Trypsin content in intestines of herring larvae, Clupea                           of marine debris; 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu, HI
                           harengus, ingesting inert polystyrene spheres or live crusta-                        (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 183-
                           cea prey. Mar. Bio. 98:331-335.                                                      196. NbAA Tech Memo. NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFS-54.
                   Holmstr6m, A.                                                                        June, J. A.
                        1975. Plastic films on the bottom of the Skagerack. Nature                           1990. Type, source, and abundance of trawl-caught marine
                           (London) 255:622-623.                                                                debris off Oregon, in the eastern Bering Sea, and in Norton
                   Horsman, P. V.                                                                               Sound in 1988. In Proceedings of the second international
                        1982. The amount of garbage pollution from merchant                                     conference on marine debris, 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu,
                           ships. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 13:167-169.                                                HI (R. S. Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 279-
                        1985. Garbage kills. BBC Wildlife, August, 391-303.                                     301. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-
                   Hoss, D. E., and L. R. Settle.                                                               154.
                        1990.. Ingestion of plastics by teleost fishes. In. Proceedings
                                                                                                        Kartar, S.,R. A. Milne, and M. Sainsbury.
                           of the second international conference on marine debris,                          1973. Polystyrene waste in the Severn estu          .ary. Mar. Pollut.
                           2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shornura and M. L.                               Bull. 4:144.
                           Godfrey), p. 693-709. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-
                           TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                                           Kartar, S., F. Abou-Seedo, and M. Sainsbury.
                   Ignell, S. E.                                                                             1976. Polystyrene spherules ih the Severn estuary-A
                        1985. Results of the 1985 research on             the highseas squid                    progress report. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 7:52.
                           driftnet fisheries of the North Pacific        Ocean. Document               Keller, G. H.
                           submitted to by the International North Pacific Fisheries                         1977.     'The submersible-a unique tool for marine ge-
                           Commission, Tokyo, Japan, November 1985. Northwest and                               ology. In Submersibles and their use in oceanography and
                           Alaska Fisheries Center, NMFS, NOAA, Auke Bay Labora-                                ocean engineering, Elsevier Scientific Pub]. Co.,
                           tory, Auke Bay, Alaska.                                                              Amsterdam, Netherlands.
                   Ignell, S. E., and M. L. Dahlberg.                                                   Kenyon, K. W., and E. Kridler.
                        1986. Results of -cooperative research on the distribution of                        1969. Laysan albatrosses swallow indigestible matter. Auk
                           marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean. Document sub-                              86:339-343.







                88           NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual

                Keppel, G.                                                                         MPDTF (Marine Plastic Debris Task Force).
                     1982. Design and analysis, a researcher's handbook, 2nd                             1988. Marine plastic debris action plan for Washington
                        edition. PrenticerHall, Inc. Englewood Cliffs, NJ.                                 State. Washington State Dept. of Natural Resources. 45 pp.
                Klemm, B., and D. Wendt.                                                           Marquez, J. A., and 1. Zandi.
                     1990. Beach confetti. Sea Frontiers 36:28-29.                                       1985. Litter management-measurement aspects. J. Res.
                Kubota, T.                                                                                 Manage. Tech. 14:67-75.
                     1990. Synthetic materials found in the stomachs of longnose                   McConnell, K. E. (chair).
                        lancetfish collected from Suruga Bay, central Japan. In                          1990. Report of the working group on economic aspects of
                        Proceedings of the second international conference on ma-                          marine debris. In Proceedings of the second international
                        rine debris, 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S.'Shomura                           conference   'on @marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu,
                        and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 710-717. NOAA Tech. Memo.                             HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 1235-
                        NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                                      1239. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-
                Kullenberg,   G.                                                                           SWFSC-154.
                     1986    *The IOC programme on marine pollution. Mar.                          McCoy, F. W.
                        Pollut. Bull. 17:341-352.                                                        1988. Floating megalitter in the eastern Mediter-
                Laist, D. W.                                                                               ranean. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 19:25-28.
                     1987. Overview of the biological effects of lost and discarded                Meade, N. F., K. M. Drazek, and V. R. Leeworithy.
                        plastic debris in the marine environment. Mar. Pollut.                           1990. An economic perspective on the problem              of marine
                        Bull. 18(6B):319-326.                                                              debris. In Proceedings of the second international confer-
                Lenihan, H. S.,J. S. OliverJ. M. Oakden, and M. D. Stephenson.                             ence on marine debris, 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S.
                     1990. Intense and localized benthic,,marine pollution                                 Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, ects.), p. 777-791. NOAA
                        around McMurdo Sound, Antarctica. Mar. Pol. Bull.                                  Tech. Memo. NkFS, NOAA-TM- N*MFS-SWFSC-I 54.
                        21:422-430.                                                                Merrell, T. R.
                Lentz, S. A.                                                                             1980. Accumulation of plastic litter on beaches of Amchitka
                     1987. Plastics in the marine environment: legal approaches                            Island, Alaska. Mar. Environ. Res. 3:171-184.
                        for international action. Mar. Pollut, Bull. 18(6B):361-                         1984. A decade of change in nets and plastic litter from
                        365.                                                                               fisheries off Alaska. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 15 :378-384.
                Lettenmaier, D. P.                                                                       1985. Fishnets and other plastic litter on Alaska beaches. In
                     1978. Design considerations for ambient stream quality                                Proceedings of the workshop on the fate and impact of ma-
                        monitoring. Water Resources Bulletin 14:884-902.                                   rine debris; 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu, HI (R. S.
                Lettenmaier, D. P., L. L. Conquest, andJ. P. Hughes.                                       Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 160-182. Memo.
                     1982. Routine streams and rivers water quality trend moni-                            NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFS-54.
                        toring review. C. W. Harris Hydraulics Laboratory, Dept.                   Merrell, T. R., and S. W. Johnson.
                        of Civil Engineering, Univ. of Washington, Seattle, WA,                          1987. Surveys of plastic litter on Alaskan beaches, 1985.
                        Technical Report No. 75.                                                           NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS F/NWC-1 16. 21 p.
                Lindstedt, D. M., andJ. C. Holmes.                                                 Mio, S., and S. Takeharna.
                     1989. Debris is not a cheese: litter in coastal Louisiana. pro-                     1988. Estimation of distribution of marine debris based on
                        ceedings of the sixth symposium on coastal and ocean man-                          the 1986 sighting survey. In Proceedings of the North Pa-
                        agement, p. 1297-1310.                                                             cific Rim fisherman's conference on marine debris;' 13-16
                Lutz, P. L.                                                                                October 1987, Kailua-Kona, HI (D. L. Alverson and J. A.
                     1990. Studies on the ingestion of plastic and latex by                                June, eds.), p. 64-94. Natural Resources Consultants, Se-
                        sea  turtles. In Proceedings of the second international                           attle, WA.
                        conference on marine debris, 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI                  Mio, S., S. Takehama, and S. Matsumura.
                        (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 719-                                 1990. Distribution and density of fioating objects in the
                        735. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                                          North Pacific based on 1987 sighting survey. In Proceed-
                        SWFSC-154.                                                                         ings of the second international conference on marine de-
                Manski, D. A., W. P. Gregg, C. A. Cole, and D. V. Richards.                                bris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, H1 (R. S. Shomura and M.
                     1991. Annual report of the national park marine debris                                L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 212-246. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS,
                        monitoring program, 1990 marine debris surveys. USDI                               NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.
                        NPS Technical Report NPS/NRWV/NRTR-91. In press.                           Morris, A. W., and E. 1. Hamilton.
                Manville, II, A. M.                                                                      1974. Polystyrene spherules in the Bristol Channel. Mar.
                     1990. . A survey of plastics on western Aleutian Island beaches                       Pollut. Bull. 5:26-27.
                        and related wildlife entanglement. In Proceedings of the                   Morris, R.J.
                        second international conference on marine debris; 2-7                            1980a. Floating plastic debris in the Mediterranean. Mar.
                        April 1989, -Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L.                                 Pollut. Bull. 11:125.
                        Godfrey), p. 349-363. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-                               1980b. Plastic debris in the surface waters of the South
                        TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                                                 Atlantic. Mar. Pollut. But.J. 11:164-166.
                MMC (Marine Mammal Commission).                                                    Nasu,.K., and K. Hiramatsu.
                     .1987. Annual report of the Marine Mammal Commission cal-                           1990. Distribution and density of marine debris in the North
                        endar year 1986. Rep. to Congress. NTIS PB98-154092,                               Pacific based on sighting surveys in 1989. Document sub-
                        193 p.                                                                             mitted to the Annual Meeting of. the International North
                     1991. Annual report of the Marine Mammal Commission cal-                              Pacific Fisheries Commission, Vancouver, Canada, 1990.0c-
                        endar year 1990. Rep. to Congress. NTIS. 270 p.                                    tober. Fisheries Agency of Japan, National Research Insti-








                                                                                                                                                              Citations           89


                          tute of Far Seas Fisheries, 7-1 Orido 5 chome, Shimizu,                      Pritzlaff, J. A. (ed.).
                          Shizuokajapan 424. 28 p.,                                                         1979. International safety standard guidelines for the opera-
                  NAS (National Academy of Sciences).                                                          tion of undersea vehicles. Marine Technology Society,
                        1975. Marine litter. In Assessing potential ocean                                      Washington, D.C.
                          pollutants. A report of the study panel on assessing poten-                  Pruter, A. T. -
                          tial ocean pollutants to the Ocean Affairs Board, Commis-                         1987a. Sources, quantities and distribution of persistent
                          sion on Natural Resources, National Research Council, Na-                            plastics in the marine environment. Mar. PolluL. Bull.
                          tional Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.C.                                         18(6B):305-310.
                  Neilsonj                                                                                  1987b. Plastics in the marine environment. Fisheries
                        1985. The Oregon experience. In Proceedings of the work-                               12:16-17.
                          shop on the fate and impact of marine debris; 27@29 No-                      Randall, B. M., R. M. Randall, and G. J. Rossouw.
                          vember 1984, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and H. 0.                                1983. Plastic particle pollution in great Shearwater (Puffinius
                          Yoshida, eds.), p. 154-159. NOAA Tech Memo. NOAA-TM-                                 gravis) from Gough Island. South African journal of An t-
                          NMFS-SWFS-54.                                                                        arctic Research 13:49-50.
                  Ogi, H.                                                                              Ribic, C. A. (chair).
                        1990. Ingestion of plastic particles by sooty and short-tailed                      1990. Report of the working group on methods to assess the
                          shearwaters in the North Pacific. In Proceedings of the                              amount and types of marine debris. In Proceedings of the
                          second international conference on marine debris, 2-7                                second international conference on marine debris; 2-7
                          April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L.                                    April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L.
                          Godfrey, eds.), p. 635-652. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS,                                   Godfrey, eds.), p. 1201-1206. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS,
                          NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                                              NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.
                  O'Hara, V_ J.                                                                             1991. Design of shoreline surveys for aquatic litter pollution.
                        1989. Trash        on America's           beaches:      a national                     Final report to U.S. EPA Office of Marine and Estuarine
                          assessment. Center for Marine Conservation, Washington                               Protection. EPA/600/3-91/026. NTISPB91179051/AS.
                          D.C.                                                                         Ribic, C. A., and L. J. Bledsoe.
                        1990. National marine debris data base: findings on beach                           1986. Design of surveys for density of surface marine debris
                          debris reported by citizens. In Proceedings of the second                            in the North Pacific. NOAA, NMFS, NWAFC Processed
                          international conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989,                           Rept. No. 267. 69 p.
                          Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p.                          1990. Estimating the density of floating marine debris: De-
                          379-391. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                                        sign considerations. In Proceedings of the second interna-
                          SWFSC-154.                                                                           tional conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Hono-
                  O'Hara, Y, J., and P. Debenham.                                                              lulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p.
                        1989. Cleaning America's beaches: 1988 national beach                                  302-308. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS,.NOAA-TM-NMFS-
                          cleanup results. Center for Marine Conservation, Wash-                               SWFSC-154.
                          ington, D.C. 202 p.                                                          Ribic, C. A., and S. W. Johnson.
                  O'Hara, K-J., and L. K. Younger.                                                          1990. Guidelines for the design of beach debris surveys. In
                        1990. Cleaning North America's beaches, 1989 beach                                     Proceedings of the second international conference on ma-
                          cleanup results. Center for Marine Conservation, Wash-                               rine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura
                          ington, D.C. 310 p.                                                                  and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 392-402. NOAA Tech. Memo.
                  O'Hara, K_ J., S. Iudicello, and R. Bierce.                                                  NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.
                        1988. A citizens guide to plastic in the ocean: more than                      Rice, W. D., and A. A. Wolman.
                          a litter problem. Center for Environmental Education,                             1982. Whale census in the Gulf of Alaska, June to August
                          Washington, D.C. 131 p                                                               1980. Rep. to the Int. Whaling Comm. 32:491-497.
                  Palmer, H. D.                                                                        Risebrough, R. W.
                        1977. The use of manned submersibles in the study of ocean                          1969. The sea: should we write it off as the future garbage
                          waste disposal. In Submersibles and their use in oceanog-                            pit? From background book supplement, 13th National
                          raphy and ocean engineering (R. A. Geyer, ed.), p. 317-334.                          Conference, U.S. National Comm. for UNESCO, San Fran-
                          Elsevier Scientific Publ. Co., Amsterdam, Netherlands.                               cisco, 23-25 November. 23 p.
                  Parker, P. A.                                                                        Rothstein, S. 1.
                        1990. Clearing the oceans of plastic. Sea Frontiers 36:18-                          1973. Plastic particle pollution of the surface of the
                          27.                                                                                  Atlantic Ocean: evidence from a seabird. Condor 75:
                  Parslow, J. L. F., and D. J. Jefferies.                                                      344-345.
                        1972. Elastic thread pollution in puffins. Mar. Pollut. Bull.                  Ryan, P. C.
                          3:43-45.                                                                          1985. Plastic pollution at sea and in seabirds off southern
                  Pettit, T. N., G. S. Grant, and G. C. Whittow.                                               Africa (Abstract only). In Proceedings of the workshop on
                        1981. Ingestion of plastics by Laysan albatross. Auk 98:839-                           the fate and impact of marine debris; 27-29 November
                          841.                                                                                 1984, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida,
                  Plotkin, P., and A. F. Amos.                                                                 eds.), p. 523. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-NMFS-
                        1990. Effects of anthropogenic debris on sea turtles in the                            SWFG-5 4.
                          northwestern Gulf of Mexico. In Proceedings of the sec-                           1986. The incidence and effects of ingested plastic in sea-
                          ond international conference on marine debris; 2-7 April                             birds. Ms.C. thesis, Univ. Cape Town, South Africa.
                          1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura,and M. L. Godfrey,                              1987a. The effects of ingested plastic on seabirds: correla-
                          eds.), p. 736-743. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-                                   tions between plastic load and body condition. Environ.
                          NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                                                      Pollut. 46:119-125.






                90         NOAA Tecbnical Report NAHS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual
                     1987b. The incidence and characteristics of plastic particles                     the North Pacific Fur Seal Commission, 28 March-8 April
                       ingested by seabirds. Mar. Environ. Res. 23:175-206.                            1983, Washington, D.C., NOAA, National Marine Mammal
                     1988a. Effects of.ingested plastic on seabird feeding: evi-                       Lab., 7600 Sand PointWay NE, Seattle, WA 98115. 90 p.
                       dence from chickens. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 19:125-128.                      Scordino, J., G. Beekman, H. Kajimura, K. Yoshida, Y Fujimaka,
                     1988b. The characteristics and distribution of plastic par-                  and M. Tomita.
                       ticles at the sea-surface off the Southwestern Cape Province,                 1984. Investigations on fur seal entanglement in 1983 and
                       South Africa. Mar. Environ. Res. 25:249-273.                                    comparisons with 1981 and 1982 entanglement data, St.
                     1988c. Intraspecific variation in plastic ingestion by sea-                       Paul Island, Alaska. Document submitted to the 27th An-
                       birds and the fiux of plastic through seabird popula-                           nual meeting of the Standing Scientific Committee, North
                       tions. Condor 90:446-452.                                                       Pacific Fur Seal Commission, 29 March-6 April 1984,
                     1990a. The effects of ingested plastic and other marine de-                       Moscow. NOAA, National Marine Mammal Lab., 7600
                       bris on seabirds. In Proceedings of the second interna-                         Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115. 2_6 p.
                       tional conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Hono-                Scordino,J., H. Kajimura, N. Baba, and A. Furuta.
                       lulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p.                          1988. Fur seal entanglement studies in 1984, St. Paul Island,
                       623-634. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                                   Alaska. In Fur seal investigations, 1985 (P. Kozloff and
                       SWFSC-154.                                                                      H. Kajimura, eds.). p. 70-78. NOAA Tech. Memo., NMFS,
                     1990b. The marine plastic debris problem off southern Af-                         F/NWC-146.
                       rica: types of debris, their environmental effects, and con-             Scott, G.
                       trol measures. In Proceedings of the second international                     1972. Plastics packaging and coastal pollution. Int. journal
                       conference on marine debris, 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI                       of Env. Studies 3:35-36.
                       (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 85-                               1975. The growth of plastic packaging litter. Int. journal of
                       102. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                                       Env. Studies 7:131-132.
                       SWFSC-154.                                                               Seber, G. A. F.
                Ryan, P. G., and S. Jackson.                                                         1982. The estimation of animal abundance and related param-
                     1987. The life span of ingested plastic particles in seabirds                     eters. Charles Griffin and Company Ltd., London, 654 p.
                       and their effect on digestive efficiency. Mar. Pollut. Bull.             Shaughnessy, P. D.
                       18:217-219.                                                                   1980. Entanglement of Cape fur seats with man made
                Ryan, P. G., A. D. Connell, and B. D., Gardner.                                        objects. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 11:332-336.
                     1988. Plastic ingestion and PCBs in seabirds: is,there a rela-             Shaw, D. G.
                       tionship? Mar. Pollut. Bull. 19:174-176.                                      1977. Pelagic tar and plastic in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering
                Sadove, S. S., and S.J. Morreale.                                                      Sea 1975. Sci. Total Environ. 8:13-20.
                     1990. Marine mammal and sea turtle encounters with ma-                     Shaw, D. G., and G. A. Mapes.
                       rine debris in the New York Bight and the 'northeast                          1979. Surface circulation and the distribution of pelagic tar
                       Atlantic. In Proceedings of the second international con-                       andplastic. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 10:160-162.
                       ference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R.               Shaw, W.
                       S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 560-570. NOAA                         1990. Summary of marine debris sightings during Canadian
                       Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-1 54.                                      high seas research surveys, 1989-1990. Document pre-
                Sameoto, D. D., and L. 0. Jaroszynski.                                                 sented at the Annual Meeting of the International North
                     1969. Otter surface sampler: A new neuston net.            J. Fish.               Pacific Fisheries Commission, Vancouver, British Columbia,
                       Res. Bd. Canada 26:2240-2244.                                                   Canada, November 1990. Department of Fisheries and
                Sanger, G. A.                                                                          Oceans, Biological Sciences Branch, Pacific Biological Sta-
                     1974. On the effect of fish net scraps and other oceanic de-                      tion, Nanaimo, B.C., Canada V9R 5K6.
                       bris in northern fur seals. Background paper submitted to                ShiberJ. G.
                       the 17th Annual Meeting of the Standing Scientific Commit-                    1979. Plastic pellets on the coast of Lebanon. Mar. Pollut.
                       tee of the North Pacific Fur Seat Commission, 11-25 March                       Bull. 10:28-30.
                       1974, Ottawa, Canada, National Marine Mammal Lab., 7600                       1982.   Plastic pellets on Spain's 'Costa del Sol' beaches.
                       Sand Point Way N.E., Seattle, WA 98115. 9 p.                                    Mar. Pollut. BullA 3:409-412.
                Scheffer, V.B.                                                                  Shomura, R. S., and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.
                     1950. Experiments in the marking of seals and sea lions.                        1985. Proceedings of the workshop on the fate and impact of
                       U.S. Fish. Wildl. Serv., Spec. Sci. Rep. Wildl. 4. 33 p.                        marine debris; 27-19 March 1984, Honolulu, HL NOAA
                Schrey, E., and G. J. M. Vauk.                                                         Tech. Memo, NMFS NOAA-YM-NMFS-SWFC-54.
                     1987. Records of entangled Gannets (Sula bassana) at Helgoland,            Sileo, L. (chair).
                       German Bight. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 18(6B):350-352.                              1990. Report of the working group on ingestion. In Pro-
                Scordino,J.                                                                            ceedings of the second international conference on marine
                     1985. Studies on fur seal entanglement, 1981-84, St. Paul                         debris, 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M.
                       Island, Alaska. In Proceedings of the workshop on the fate                      L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 1226-1234. NOAA Tech. Memo.
                       and impact of marine debris; 27-29 November 1984, Hono-                         NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.
                       lulu, HI (k. S. Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 278-                Sileo, L., P. R. Sievert, M. D. Samuel, and S. I. Fefer.
                       290. NOAA Tech Memo. NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFS-54.                                    1990. Prevalence and characteristics of plastic ingested by
                Scordino,J., and R. Fisher.                                                            Hawaiian seabirds. In Proceedings of the second interna-
                     1983. Investigations on fur seal entanglement in net frag-                        tional conference on marine debris, 2-7 April 1989, Hono-
                       ments, plastic bands and other debris in 1981 and 1982, St.                     lulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 665-
                       Paul Island, Alaska. Background paper submitted to the                          681. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-
                       26th Annual Meeting of the Standing Scientific Committee                        SWFSC-154.







                                                                                                                                                      Citations          91

                 Slip, D.J., and H. R. Burton.                                                         1985. Plastic ingestion in the North Atlantic fulmar. Mar.
                      1990. The composition and origin of marine debris stranded                          Pollut. Bull. 16:367-369.
                         on the shores of subantarctic Macquarie Island. In Pro-                  van Franeker, J. A. and P. J. Bell.
                         ceedings of the Second International Conference on Ma-                        1988. Plastic ingestion by petrels breeding in Ant-
                         rine Debris, 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura                         arctica. Mar. Poll. Bull. 19:672-674.
                         and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 403-416. NOAA Tech.                         Vauk, G.J. M., and E. Schrey.
                         Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                           1987. Litter pollution from ships in the German Bight.
                 Slip, D. J., K. Green, and E. J. Woehler.                                                Mar. Pollut. Bull. 18(6B):316-318.
                      1990. Ingestion of anthropogenic articles           by seabirds at          Venrick, E. L., T. W. Backman, W. C. Bartram, C. J. Platt, M. S.
                         Macquarie Island. Marine Ornithology 18:74-77.                             Thornhill, and R. E. Yates.
                 Sokal, R. R., and F. J. Rohlf.                                                        1973. Man-made objects on the surface of the North Pacific
                      1981. Biometry, 2nd edition. W. H. Freeman and Co., San                             Ocean. Nature 241:271.
                         Francisco,                                                               Verner, S. S.
                 Stewart, B. S., and P. K. Yochem.                                                     1990. Handbook for preparing quality assurance project
                      1985. Entanglement of pinnipeds in net and line fragments                           plans for environmental measurements, Technical Re-,
                         and other debris in the Southern California Bight. In Pro-                       sources, Inc., Rockville, MD.
                         ceedings of the workshop on the fate and impact of marine                Wagner, K. D.
                         debris, 27-29 November 1984, Honolulu, HI (R. S.                              1990. Medical wastes and the beach washups of 1988: Issues
                         Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.), p. 315-325. NOAA                               and impacts. In Proceedings of the second international
                         Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFC-54.                                          conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI
                      1987. Entanglement of pinnipeds in synthetic debris and                             (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 811-
                         fishing net and fishing line fragments at San Nicolas and                        824. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-
                         San Miguel Islands, California, 1978-1986. Mar. Pollut.                          SWFSC-154.
                         Bull. 18(6B):336-339.                                                    Walker, W. A., and J. M. Coe.
                      1990. Pinniped entanglement in synthetic materials in the                        1990. Survey of marine debris ingestion by odontocete
                         Southern California Bight. In Proceedings of the second                          cetaceans. In Proceedings of the second international
                         international conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989,                       conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI
                         Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p.                         (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. 747-
                         792-809. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                                    774. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-
                         SWFSC-154.                                                                       SWFSC,154.
                 Takehama, S.                                                                     Wallace, N.
                      1990. Estimation of damages to fishing vessels caused by ma-                     1985. Debris entanglement in the marine environment:
                         rine debris, based on insurance statistics. In Proceedings                       a review. In Proceedings of the workshop on the fate
                         of the second international conference on marine debris;                         and impact of marine Debris; 27-29 November 1984,
                         2-7 April 1989, Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L.                            Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and H. 0. Yoshida, eds.),
                         Godfrey, eds.), p. 792-809. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS,                               p. 259-277. NOAA Tech Memo. NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFS-
                         NOAA-TM-NMFS-SWFSC-154.                                                          54.
                 Trulli, W. R., H. K. Trulli, and D. P. Redford.                                  Wehle, D. H. S., and F. C. Coleman.
                      1990. Characterization of marine debris in selected harbors                      1983. Plastics at sea. Nat. Hist. (Feb.) :20-26.
                         of the United States. In Proceedings of the second interna-              Wilber, R.J.
                         tional conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989, Hono-                     1987. Plastics in the north Atlantic. Oceanus 30:61-68.
                         lulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and M. L. Godfrey, eds.), p. S04-                Willoughby, N. G.
                         324. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-                                     1986. Man-made litter on the shores of the Thousand Island
                         SWFSC-154.                                                                       Archipelago, Java. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 17:224-228.
                 U.S. EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency).                                 Wolfe, D. A.
                      1987. Standard operating procedures for the collection and                       1987. Persistent plastics and debris in the ocean: an inter-
                         at-sea processing of neuston samples. SOP No. 4-35, Revi-                        national problem of ocean disposal. Mar. Pollut. Bull.
                         sion No. 01, U.S. EPA Office of Marine and Estuarine Pro-                        18(6B):303-305.
                         tection, Incineration-at-Sea Program.                                    Wong, C. S., D. R. Green, and W.J. Cremey.
                      1990a. Methods to manage and control plastic wastes, report                      1974. Quantitative tar and plastic waste distributions in the
                         to Congress. Office of Solid Waste/Office of Marine and                          Pacific Ocean. Nature 247:30-32.
                         Estuarine Protection, EPA/530-SW-89-051. Washington,                     Wong, C. S., D. MacDonald, and W. J. Cretney.
                         D.C.                                                                          1976. Distribution of tar and other particulate pollutants
                      1990b. Final data re.p;rt for the study of floatables in U.S.                       along the Beaufort Sea coast. Beaufort Sea Project, Victoria,
                         waters (Harbbr Studies Program) November 1988 through                            British Columbia, Canada. Beaufort Sea Technical Report
                         February 1989. Office of Marine and Estuarine Protection,                        No. 13.
                         EPA 503/4-90-003. Washington, D.C. 139 pp. + Appendices.                 Yagi, N., and M. Nomura.
                 van Dolah, R. F., V. G. Burrell, Jr., and S. B. West.                                 1988. Sighting survey on marine debris in the mid-western
                      1980. The distribution of pelagic tar and plastics in the                           Pacific from 1977 through 1986. In Proceedings of the
                         South Atlantic Bight. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 11:352-356.                             North Pacific Rim fisherman's conference on marine de-
                 van FranekerJ. A.                                                                        bris; 13-16 October 1987, Kailua-Kona, HI (D. L. Alverson
                      1983. Plastics-een bedreiging voor zeevogels (with English                          and J. A. June, eds.), p. 130-142. Natural Resources Con-
                         summary). Nbr. NSO 4:41-61.                                                      sultants, Seattle, WA.






               92        NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108: Marine Debris Survey Manual

              Yoshida, K, and N. Baba.                                                         international conference on marine debris; 2-7 April 1989,
                   1985a. A survey of drifting stray fishing net fragments in the              Honolulu, HI (R. S. Shomura and A L. Godfrey, eds.), p.
                     northern Sea of Japan (Western Pacific Ocean).                            325-330. NOAA Tech. Memo. NMFS, NOAA-TM-NMFS-
                     Document submitted to the 28th Meeting of the Standing                    SWFSC-154.
                     Scientific Committee of the North Pacific Fur Seal Commis-          Zonfrillo, B.
                     sion, Tokyo, 4-12 April 1985,13 pp.                                     1985. Petrels   eating contraceptives, polythene and plastic
                   1985b. Results of a survey on drifting fishing gear or fish net             beads. Br. Birds 78:360-351.
                     pieces in the Bering Sea. Document submitted to the 28th            Zsolnay, A.
                     Meeting of the Standing Scientific Committee of the North               1987. Spatial and temporal variation of pelagic tar in the
                     Pacific Fur Seal Commission, 4-12 April 1985, Tokyo, 13 pp.               Mediterranean Sea. Chemosphere 16:399-404.
              Yukinawa, M., and S. Min.
                   1990. Preliminary report on the distribution of small-sized
                     marine debris in Suruga Bay. In Proceedings of the second








                                                                          Guide for Authors
                                                                     NOAA Technical Report NMFS



                PREPARA TION                                                                 footnoted with italic lower case letters (a, b, c) for general com-
                                                                                             ment, with asterisks for probability in statistical data. Because
                Title of manuscript should be as brief as possible (between 6 and            tables are typeset, they need only be submitted typed and
                12 words) and should not include the Latin binomial except                   formatted.
                when it is needed for clarification, i.e. to distinquish between spe-
                cies sharing the same common name or between species known                   Figures include line illustrations and photographs. Unless photo-
                internationally by different common names.                                   graphs are submitted on glossy paper with good contrast, we can-
                                                                                             not guarantee a good final printed copy. Figures must be labeled
                Abstract should be one paragraph of about 200 words or less.                 with author's name and number of figure. Lettering within the
                It should state the main scope of the paper but emphasize its con-           figure should not be so heavy and large as to upstage the impact
                clusions and relevant findings. Because abstracts are circulated             of the entire figure. Avoid "outlier" words in a figure which take
                by abstracting agencies, it is important that they represent the             up needless space. Each figure must include a legend that explains
                research clearly and concisely.                                              all symbols and abbreviations. These figure legends should
                                                                                             be typewritten on a separate piece of paper at the end of the
                Text must be typed double-spaced throughout and should be                    manuscript.
                divided into the following sections: Introduction, Materials and
                Methods, Results, Discussion (or Conclusions), and Acknowl-                  Copies of Published Reports are available free of charge to the
                edgments. Headings within each section must be short, reflect                senior author (50 copies) and to his or her laboratory (50). If the
                a logical sequence, and follow the rules of multiple subdivision             article is part of a proceedings or collection of articles, the senior
                (i.e., there can be no subdivision without at least two items of             author receives 50 free copies of the individual article and one
                subdivision). The entire text should be intelligible to interdisci-          copy of the collective work. Additional copies (reprints or oflprints)
                plinary readers; therefore, all acronyms, abbreviations, and                 of an article may be purchased in lots of 100 at a cost of $1.40
                technical terms should be defined the first time they are used.              per page at the time of first printing. Additional copies of a
                The scientific names of species must be written in full the first            collective work must be sought from the editor assigned to coor-
                time they are mentioned and abbreviated in subsequent refer-                 dinate the research papers for submission as a NOAA Technical
                ences. Footnotes should be avoided as much as possible. We follow            Report.
                the U.S. Government Printing Office, SyleManual (1984 ed.) and the
                CBE Style Manual (5th ed.) for general format and style; the
                American Fisheries Society's most recent edition of Common and               SUBMISSION
                Scientific Names of Fishes from the United States and Canada for fish
                nomenclature. Dates should be written as 11 November 1991.                   Send manuscript (original and two copies) to the Scientific Editor:
                Measurements should be expressed in metric units, e.g., tons as                      Dr. Linda Jones, Scientific Editor
                metric tons (t), but if the work is in British long tonnes, please                   National Marine Maninial Laboratory, F/AKC3
                make this fact explicit to the reader. The numeral one (1) should                    National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA
                be typed as a one, not a lower-case el (1).                                          7600 Sand Point Way NE
                Citations comprise both unpublished and published works.                             Seattle, WA 98115-0070.
                Authors are advised to avoid references to nonstandard material              Once the manuscript has been accepted for publication, you will
                such as internal and project reports wherever possible. For these            be asked to submit a software copy of your manuscript to the
                works, include whether they are available from NTIS (National                Scientifc Editor. The software copy should be submitted in ASCII
                Technical Information Service) or from some other public                     format (i.e., in a MS-DOS "print" or "nondocument" file) and
                depository. Personal communications and unpublished data must                should be placed on a 5.25-inch (preferably) or 3.5-inch disk that
                be cited in parentheses in the text with full address of com-                is double-sided, double or high density, and.that is compatible
                municator or author. Follow the name-and-year system for cita-               with either IBM or Apple Macintosh systems.
                tion format. In the text, cite Smith and Jones (1977) or (Smith
                and Jones 197 7). If there is a sequence of citations, list chron-           Once the manuscript is being typeset and prepared for publica-
                ologically: Smith 1932; Green 1947; Smith and Jones 1985.                    tion, all inquiries should be made to the Managing Editor:
                Abbreviations of serials should conform to abbreviations given
                in Serial Sourcesfor Biosis Data Base". AUTHORS ARE RESPONSIBLE                      Sharyn Matriotti, Managing Editor
                FOR THE ACCURACY AND COMPLETENESS OF ALL CITATIONS.                                  NOAA Technical Reports NMFS
                                                                                                     National Marine Fisheries Service
                Tables should not be excessive in size and must be cited in                          Scientific Publications Office, F/NWR1
                numerical order in the text. All unusual symbols must be ex-                         7600 Sand Point Way NE
                plained in the table heading. Other incidental comments can be                       Seattle, WA 98115-0070.









                                       UNITED STATES
                           DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
                              NATIONAL OCEANIC AND ATMOSPHERIC                                                                                                              BULK RATE
                                          ADMINISTRATION                                                                                                           POSTAGE & FEES PAID
                              NATIONAL MARINE FISHERIES SERVICE
                                 SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS OFFICE                                                                                                 U.S. Department of Commerce
                                             BIN C15700                                                                                                                   Permit No. G-19
                                         SEATTLE, WA 98115
                                         OFFICIAL BUSINESS
                             Penalty for Private Use, $300
























                                                                  NOAA SCIIENTIFTC AND TECIINICAL PUBLICATIONS


                                                        7he National Oceanic and Atmospheric Acbriinistration was established as part of the Department of Commerce
                                                    oil October 13, 1970. The mission responsibilities of NOAA are to assess the socioeconomic impact of natural and
                                                    technological changes in the environment and to monitor and predict the state of the solid Earth, the oceans and their
                                                    living resources, the atmosphere, and the space environment of the Earth.


                                                        The major components of NOAA regularly produce various types of scientific and technical information in the
                                                    following kinds of publications:

                                                    PROFESSIONAL PAPERS-Important definitive research              TECHNICAL SERVICE PUBLICATIONS-Reports ron-
                                                    results, major techniques, and special investigations.         taining data, observations, instructions, etc. A partial
                                                                                                                   listing includes data serials; predictions and outlook
                                                    CONTRACT AND GRANT REPORTS-Reports prepared                    periodicals; technical manuals, training papers, planning
                                                    by contractors or grantees under NOAA sponsorship.             reports, and information serials; and miscellaneous
                                                                                                                   technical publications.
                                                    ATLAS-Presentation of analyzed data generally in the           TECHNICAL REPORTS-Journal quality with extensive
                                                    form of maps showing distribution of rainfall, chemical        details, mathematical developments, or data listings.
                                                    and physical conditions of oceans and atmosphere, distribu-    TECHNICAL MEMORANDUMS-Reports of prelim-
                                                    tion of fishes and marine mammals, ionospheric condi-          inary, partial, or negative research or technology results,
                                                    tions, etc.                                                    interim instructions, and the like.







                                              4011                         Information on availability ofNO4A publications can be obtainedfrom:
                                                         A                                      U.S. Department of Commerce
                                                      R IV,
                                                                                           National Technical Information Service
                                                                                                     5285 Port Royal Road
                                                                                                     Springfield, VA 22161
                                                                                                                                                                                  IVI  I    @11 1111  1@ 1111
                                                                                                                                                                3 6668 00003 7319