How long do various marine debris items take to degrade in the marine environment?
Bottom line: Most debris items take a long time to degrade in the marine environment. However, the more natural/organic the material composition of the item is, the less time it generally takes to degrade. Figures on the amount of time it takes for durable debris items to break down in the environment are many and varied (e.g., Aluminum can: 100 years (The Coral Reef Alliance and Worldwise) vs. 80-200 years (Mote Marine Laboratory)). It is unknown where the numbers listed in degradation timelines for these durable items originated or how they were estimated. Likely that the numbers listed on posters and pamphlets are estimates intended to raise awareness of the very long life of marine debris items rather than provide exact degradation rates. Basically, degradation time depends upon numerous factors including material type, size, and thickness, temperature, wave action, exposure to sunlight, and location (e.g., on the beach, in the surf, floating at sea, etc). For more information on t
