The most commonly thought of impacts of marine litter is the entanglement of marine life and also the ingestion of the trash. However, there are many more impacts of marine litter, not only on the aquatic environment but also on human life.
Marine debris can end up on the sea bed, suffocating plants and breaking corals. The oceans current's also move trash, therefore the problem of invasive species can occur by the movement of the invasive species using the trash as a vessel to move from one coast to another. Boats also can suffer damage when nets get entangled in their propellers and they run into large pieces of garbage.
On the shore, firstly, garbage is very unsightly and can cause loss of tourism activity, lowering the country's revenue. Fisheries and fishermen also lose out when fish is trapped by fishing gear that was lost at sea. On the other hand pieces of broken glass and other sharp things can cause bodily damage to not only the animals but to humans. When cleaning up the sea shores a method called raking is used. This method employs tractors that are used to scoop up the garbage on the shore. This method of removal can result in erosion of the shoreline, and severe destruction of nesting sites and aquatic vegetation.
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