{"id":20107,"date":"2025-04-07T15:04:56","date_gmt":"2025-04-07T19:04:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/councilgreatlakesregion.org\/?p=20107"},"modified":"2025-04-07T16:33:29","modified_gmt":"2025-04-07T20:33:29","slug":"data-and-findings-from-the-great-lakes-plastic-cleanups-2024-season-point-to-it-being-the-most-impactful-yet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/councilgreatlakesregion.org\/data-and-findings-from-the-great-lakes-plastic-cleanups-2024-season-point-to-it-being-the-most-impactful-yet\/","title":{"rendered":"Data and Findings from the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup\u2019s 2024 Season Point to it Being the Most Impactful Yet"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New\u00a0technologies\u00a0provide\u00a0rich insights\u00a0on plastic pollution\u00a0and\u00a0strengthen efforts to protect the Great Lakes.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup (GLPC), a\u00a0joint\u00a0initiative of Pollution Probe and the CGLR\u00a0Foundation, the charitable arm of the Council of the Great Lakes Region (CGLR),\u00a0is pleased to release\u00a0data\u00a0from its 2024 season. The findings\u00a0showcase\u00a0the initiative\u2019s continued success in removing plastic and other debris from the Great Lakes and surrounding environment,\u00a0and the important role\u00a0that\u00a0community science and data collection can\u00a0play in\u00a0informing\u00a0related\u00a0policy and prevention efforts. The\u00a0initiative successfully removed hundreds of thousands of plastic pieces and other debris from the lakes\u00a0based on an\u00a0expansion\u00a0to additional\u00a0sites, engagement of\u00a0new partners, and an increase in\u00a0public awareness on plastic pollution across the Great Lakes region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year, the addition\u00a0of mobile plastic capture technologies,\u00a0such as PixieDrones, <\/strong>water-based remote-controlled waste collectors, and\u00a0BeBots<\/strong>, beach-cleaning robots, provided\u00a0new insights into how plastic pollution varies across different media and environments.\u00a0An estimated total of\u00a052,461 pieces<\/strong>\u00a0of plastic and other debris were removed from sites across the Great Lakes this season alone, with the most common debris types collected being small hard fragments, small foam pieces<\/strong>, and cigarette butts<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Findings from the 2024 season provide a deeper understanding of the complexity of plastic pollution in our Great Lakes,\u201d said Melissa DeYoung, Chief Executive Officer, Pollution Probe. \u201cThe mobile technologies that we are deploying not only allow us to remove plastic from new areas and hard to reach spots, but they also encourage meaningful discussions with communities about the negative impacts plastic pollution has on our lakes, wildlife and people, and the real difference we can make when we all work together as part of initiatives like the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A significantly higher proportion of small plastic debris was collected from surface water than from shorelines, reinforcing previous findings that pointed to larger plastic items breaking down once they find their way into the lakes. Small hard plastic fragments were more prevalent on shorelines, while small foam pieces were the most common item found in the water, possibly due to the fact that they are lightweight and easily carried by wind or runoff. These insights emphasize the need for targeted interventions based on how and where plastic accumulates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cThanks to our local partners and funders, 2024 was another very successful year for the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup,” said Lora Shrake, Interim Executive Director of the CGLR Foundation. “As a result of the waste characterizations that have been completed, we are learning a lot more about the types of plastic pollution in the Great Lakes watershed, the ways in which it is reaching the lakes, and how we can work together to stop plastic waste and litter in our communities.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As in previous years, the initiative also removed\u00a0a variety\u00a0of\u00a0interesting\u00a0items\u00a0from the lakes, such as toys<\/strong>, fireworks<\/strong>, fishing and hunting gear<\/strong>, earplugs<\/strong>, and fake nails<\/strong>, many of which were\u00a0collected by the BeBots\u00a0on public beaches and along shorelines. Among the five Great Lakes, the highest average plastic count was reported for Lake Ontario, with an estimated 210 pieces per waste characterization. The top three items collected were small foam pieces, small hard fragments, and small pellets. Small debris made up 75% of the plastic reported in Lake Ontario, with the majority\u00a0collected in nearshore environments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since its launch in 2020, the GLPC has:<\/p>\n\n\n\n