The Global Partnership on Marine Litter, which will be led by the United Nations Environment Programmme (UNEP), was launched at a side event during the Rio+20 conference in Rio de Janeiro.


The Government of the Netherlands, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Natural Resources Defense Council, Plastics Pollution Coalition and a number of UN agencies, were among those to signal their support for the initiative.

It follows recommendations made by 64 countries at a UN meeting held in Manila earlier this year to step up global efforts to protect oceans from land-based pollution.

Despite ongoing efforts to prevent and reduce marine debris (such as plastic bottles or discarded fishing gear), there is evidence that the problem continues to grow - with significant impacts on biodiversity, health and livelihoods.

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