Abstract
Marine debris constitutes as any persistent solid material that is manufactured or processed and, directly or indirectly, disposed of or abandoned in the marine environment. The presence of marine debris has been shown to have significant environmental and economic impacts. Unfortunately, the quantity of marine debris is increasing at accelerating rates due to increased production of single-use items and poor stewardship practices. To address these issues, a team of coastal Extension specialists leveraged the long-standing annual Mississippi Coastal Cleanup event to form the Mississippi Coastal Cleanup Program (MSCCP) in 2016. The mission of the MSCCP is preventing and removing litter from the coastal environment through education, outreach, research, and cleanup events. During cleanup events, thousands of citizen scientists collect marine debris data that is then used to inform decision making and the development of outreach programs. In 2019 alone, over 8,500 citizen scientists removed and categorized over 17.8 tons of marine debris from coastal Mississippi. Plastic items made up over 77% of the collected marine debris by count. This locally relevant information is utilized to create marine debris-focused outreach materials that are distributed through a variety of methods, including social media and direct presentations. Feedback gathered during outreach events has led to several additional activities and materials for the program in 2020 and beyond. These activities include the addition of a July 5th Star-Spangled cleanup, monthly cleanups at peer-suggested sites, as well as the creation of the Mississippi Inland Cleanup Program (MSICP). This new program will extend the cleanup efforts inland to serve a total of twenty-one counties across the southeastern region of Mississippi by promoting trash-free education and additional cleanup events.
