Digging into Marine Debris

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02 April 2026 – PROVINCETOWN, MA – Mounds of smelly, soggy plastic spill across a 20-foot table as clusters of enthusiastic  – and rubber-gloved – undergraduate students sort, count, and categorize it. Nearby, industrial pails and more mounds of debris line the wall.

The scene marks a moment of progress as 11 Cornell undergraduates from multiple disciplines joined the Center for Coastal Studies for a weeklong partnership to explore the dynamics of debris – from beach cleaning, to data categorization of the haul, to artistic expression.

What did the Cornell students do?

The debris is the result of a five -hour beach cleanup at Duck Harbor in Wellfleet the day before, program leaders say. There was everything from chunks of styrofoam, netting, and fishing line to shotgun casings, lighters, tampon applicators, straws, pens, whiffle balls, and even a few plastic filter disks, which are still washing up on Cape beaches after a malfunction at a wastewater plant in Hooksett, New Hampshire accidentally released 8 million of them to the environment in 2011.

How did the connection happen?

Annie Lewandowski, senior lecturer of music at Cornell University, says she researches humpback whale songs, and the ways the whales appear to compose new songs. As she followed the sounds of whales, she learned that entanglement in fishing gear was a major cause of injury and death. That led her to the work of Laura Ludwig at the Center for Coastal Studies, and the start of multi-year connection between the two organizations.

The relationship, now its fourth year, began during an extensive beach cleanup on Cuttyhunk Island that removed tons of debris, and continues with a yearly program in which students clean a beach, then sort, categorize, and enter data about the debris. They also create artwork from the haul.

What is the marine debris program?

The  Marine Debris and Plastics program at the Center for Coastal Studies has been gathering and tracking marine debris since its first beach cleanup in 1989. Today, under the guidance of Ludwig and with significant grant support, it has amassed a huge database logging the volume and type of debris, helping to build understanding of scale of plastic pollution in the ocean.

Its work addresses both beach and coastline debris as well as “ghost gear,” that is, fixed fishing gear such as  lobster pots and commercial fishing gear that have become lost or abandoned. Lost nets continue to entangle sea life long after they have separated from the boat, while lobster pots continue to entrap if they are not hauled in.

What is the role of creating art?

The program also uses creative expression both to repurpose materials and raise awareness of the impact of plastics on the world’s oceans. The Cornell students use debris to make sculpture, such as a three-foot-tall surreal sailboat with a styrofoam body and abandoned fence as a sail.

What did the group find?

One of the biggest surprises for the group, said Lewandowski, lies in just how much debris litters the beach. At first glance, she said, Duck Harbor looked fairly clean, but as the students looked more closely,  the view changed. The bags and bags of material – much of it some form of plastic – that filled the area left students stunned, she said.

Cornell student Katarina Spasojevic offers a tour of the sorting work – including tubs of shotgun shell casings, straws, and cigarette lighters.

“I guess they just keep getting left behind?” she said, pointing  to an overflowing bin of lighters.

What does the collaboration change?

The work leaves a lasting impression and a greater understanding of the impact of humans on oceans and coast. “There is a lot … a lot … of debris,” Lewandowski said. “Once you see it, you can’t start unseeing it.”

More information:

Center for Coastal Studies Marine Debris and Plastics Program

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