Grey literature

Summary of the economic impact of marine plastic pollution in Fiji, Samoa, and Vanuatu

The impacts of marine plastics on the fisheries and tourism sectors in 2019 were estimated for Fiji, Samoa and Vanuatu. Impact estimates were based on both plastic accumulation and leakage into the marine environment from these countries and other countries in the Southern Pacific.

Plastics impact fisheries through dumped catch, fouling incidents, net repairs and time lost cleaning nets; while ghost fishing can generate additional revenue losses. Tourism can be impacted when tourists are no longer willing to visit, due to plastic litter on beaches. In order to avoid this impact, beach clean-up costs need to be incurred. These, and other factors, are costs associated with marine plastic pollution.

A full report for Fiji is available here.

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