Intro

Up to 23 times more plastic pollution escapes into terrestrial ecosystems than oceans.

Our SoOT Report aims to replicate the ‘Blue Planet’ effect for terrestrial ecosystems. We aim to understand the causes, prevalence, composition and impacts of SUP on recreational trails and their users.

Since July 2020, our citizen scientists have removed and recorded over 230,000 items of SUP and submitted over 700 data sets. Here’s what we found.

Causes

We conducted a meta-analysis to understand ‘littering behaviour’. Initial themes that have emerged include: disconnection, disgust, control (or lack thereof), and social proof.

Prevalence

To establish SUP prevalence we carried out ‘Trash Counts’. Citizen scientists counted SUP items on 5,030kms of trails at 350 locations. There was an average of 42 items per km;  a trail user may encounter an item of SUP every 24m.

Composition

To establish SUP composition we carried out ‘Trash Surveys’. 81% of all items encountered on trails were single use products. 10% of items wouldn’t exist if we had a Deposit Return Scheme.

Impact

To investigate ecological impact, we established monitoring sites in 6 forest locations, over 9 months, with 790 hours of fieldwork and analysis.

We estimate that 1,891 acres of flora is being choked by SUP in the UK. 32% of submissions reported animal interaction and 21% reported animal death.

Qualitative data suggests that SUP negatively impacts individuals’ experiences of nature. But trail cleans affect volunteers positively: 90% reported increased pride and felt more connected to nature, and 99% would take part again.

Thanks and next steps

This research was made possible thanks to 4,250 citizen scientists and our academic and corporate partners. The SoOT report launch reached 208,517 people, and over 3,000 people have visited its webpage. In aligning our work with the Global Plastic Treaty and the United Nations’ SDGs this lays the ground for further research across Europe.