New U.N. report says ocean trash is a `` tremendous '' problem . `` Although a number of countries have taken steps at the national level to deal with marine litter , the overall situation is not improving . '' Much of the trash is plastic , which goes away very slowly , if ever . The rest is metal and other materials that are not easily broken down by bacteria or sunlight. One such garbage patch is said to be the size of Texas .
New U.N. report says ocean trash is a `` tremendous '' problem . Much of the trash is plastic , which goes away very slowly , if ever . The rest is metal and other materials that are not easily broken down by bacteria or sunlight. One such garbage patch is said to be the size of Texas .