http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2014/20141028_marinedebris_hawaii.html

NOAA removes 57 tons of marine debris from Northwestern Hawaiian Islands

October 28, 2014

A team of 17 NOAA divers sailing aboard NOAA Ship Oscar Elton Sette has
returned from a 33-day mission to remove marine debris from
Papah?naumoku?kea Marine National Monument in Hawaii, a World Heritage
Site and one of the largest marine conservation areas in the world.

In total, they removed approximately 57 tons of derelict fishing nets
and plastic litter from the monument?s tiny islands and atolls,
sensitive coral reefs and shallow waters.

?The amount of marine debris we find in this remote, untouched place is
shocking,? said Mark Manuel, operations manager for NOAA Fisheries Coral
Reef Ecosystem Division and chief scientist for the mission. ?Every day,
we pulled up nets weighing hundreds of pounds from the corals. We filled
the dumpster on the Sette to the top with nets, and then we filled the
decks. There?s a point when you can handle no more, but there?s still a
lot out there.?