According to a study described in a paper published in the journal “Science”, between 4.8 and 12.7 million tons of plastic in the oceans were thrown in 2010 by people living within 50 kilometers from the coasts. During that year, a total of 275 million tons of plastic waste were generated in 192 coastal nations.

This research was conducted by a group of researchers at the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis led by Jenna Jambeck, assistant professor of environmental engineering at the University of Georgia’s College of Engineering. The researchers looked at the debris entering the oceans from land, seas and other sources.