lost

Quantifying the annual burden of fishing gear lost to our ocean

An estimated 1.7 million metric tons of fishing gear vanish into the ocean each year, a measurable burden we can no longer ignore. This is not abstract waste; it is ghost nets and lines that continue fishing long after they are lost. Understanding drives protection, and these empirical figures give us a starting point for real action. For deeper context on how our habits compound ocean stress, see our mapping of plastic waste flows.