Plastic pellets found on Washington beaches

Volunteers participated in Washington for the first annual International Plastic Pellet Count on Saturday, May 3rd, hosted by Environment America Research and Policy Center, the Public Interest Research Group Education Fund, Environmental Action, Nurdle Patrol, 5 Gyres, and Waterkeeper Alliance. 

The International Plastic Pellet Count was created with the goal of increasing awareness of plastic pellets as a major environmental pollutant and collecting data on where and how they are entering our environments.

Plastic pellets are pervasive in the environment

Plastic pellets, also called nurdles, are a form of pre-production plastic used to produce most of the plastic we consume and engage with in our daily lives. More than 10 trillion plastic pellets enter our oceans annually, making them a massive contributor to oceanic pollution. Once in our environments and ecosystems, plastic pellets pose huge hazards to fish and other wildlife.

Plastic pellets found on Washington beaches

As part of the International Plastic Pellet Count, fifteen events took place in Washington, with 53% of events finding one or more plastic pellets. In total, 777 pellets were collected across Washington. All of the pellets found in Washington were near a waterway or ocean ecosystem.

Point Robinson, Washington – 426 pellets were collected at an event on Maury Island in Puget Sound by volunteers from A Cleaner Alki.

Seattle, Washington – 196 pellets were collected at Lincoln Park in southwest Seattle by volunteers from A Cleaner Alki. They were found scattered among driftwood and other debris.

Kalaloch, Washington – 90 pellets were collected in Kalaloch on the Southern Olympic Peninsula by a community member.

Seattle, Washington – 35 pellets were collected at Lincoln Park in southwest Seattle by volunteers from A Cleaner Alki. All 35 pellets were found within one square foot of microwood debris.

Seattle, Washington – 21 pellets were collected along the Eastern banks of the Duwamish River by a community member.

Seattle, Washington – 7 pellets were collected at Magnuson Park on Lake Washington by volunteers from Puget Soundkeepers.

Shipwreck Point, Washington – 1 pellet was found on the northern coast of the Olympic Peninsula on the Straight of Juan de Fuca at an event hosted by Lions Clubs International.

Seattle, Washington – 1 pellet was collected off of South 162nd street in Seattle along the Green River. The pellet was found along the high water line.

While the other events did not find any pellets, the data they collected is still critical to understanding plastic pellets as a major source of ocean pollution and where they originate. Some of these events also helped to remove other forms of plastic pollution from our waterways and natural areas.