the items commonly found to have washed ashore. Six pack rings, in particular, are considered emblematic of the problem. The US military used ocean dumping for unused weapons and bombs, including ordinary bombs, UXO, landmines and chemical weapons from at least 1919 until 1970. Millions of pounds of ordnance were disposed of in the Gulf of Mexico and off the coasts of at least 16 states, from New Jersey to Hawaii (although these, of course, do not wash up onshore, and the US is not the only country who has practiced this). Eighty percent of marine debris is plastic. Plastics accumulate because they typically do not biodegrade as many other substances do. They photodegrade on exposure to sunlight, although they do so only under dry conditions, as water inhibits photolysis. In a 2014 study using computer models, scientists from the group 5 Gyres, estimated 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic weighing 269,000 tons were dispersed in oceans in similar amount in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. Persistent Industrial Marine Debris Persistent industrial marine debris refers to materials and activities used in industrial activities that do not readily degrade, that persist in the environment, and tend to accumulate over time. The activities can include fishing, boating, and aquaculture industries that harvest or use resources in the marine environment and may lose or discard gear, materials, machinery or solid wastes from industrial processes into the water or onto shorelines. This can include anything as large as a fishing boat or as small as particle from a Styrofoam lobster float. In 2003, a study was conducted to identify types, amounts, sources, and effects of persistent industrial marine debris in the coastal waters and along the shores of Charlotte County, New Brunswick, and examine any relationship between the amount and types of persistent industrial marine debris, and the types and numbers of industrial operations nearby. Materials like plastic or foam can break down into smaller particles and may look like small sea creatures to wildlife such as birds, cetaceans, and fish, and they may eat these particles. Indigestible material may accumulate in the gut creating blockages or a false sense of fullness and eventually death from lack of appropriate nutrient intake. Ghost nets Macroplastic Microplastics Deep-sea debris Marine debris is even found on the floor of the Arctic ocean. Although an increasing number of studies have been focused on plastic debris accumulation on the coasts,