Column Headings
Table 1: A list of all columns included in the raw data and a description of each.
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| beach | Local survey location |
| date | Date the survey took place |
| team | Volunteers present |
| start time | Volunteers began searching the transect |
| end time | Volunteers finished searching the transect |
| latitude | GPS at one point on the transect |
| longitude | GPS at one point on the transect |
| sea_region | Body of water in which the beach lies on |
| location | Region in which the beach is located |
| land | Differentiation between mainland and island |
| beach_dir | Direction in which the beach faces |
| beach_orientation | Distinction whether the beaches face the prevailing wind direction or not (windward / leeward) – in this case SW is windward and NE is leeward |
| survey_count | Number of beach clean surveys at each beach |
| substrate | Substrate categorisation observed at time of survey (sandy, pebble sml, pebble lrg, coarse sand) |
| sea_strength | Strength of the waves observed (calm, medium, strong) |
| tide | Tide phase (low, high) |
| wind_dir | Wind direction at time of survey (onshore, offshore) |
| wind_strength | Strength (weak, medium, strong) |
| rain | Was it raining? |
| rain_strength | Rain strength at time of survey (weak, medium, heavy) |
| season | Time of year the survey was conducted |
| survey_length (m) | The length of the horizontal transect (m) |
| comments | Any observations at the time of the survey |
| picture | Pictures taken of the beach |
| accessibility | How easy to access the beach by car (easy < 10 min walk, medium > 10 min walk, difficult – not accessible by car > 30 min walk) |
| bags | How many bags were removed at the time of the beach clean |
| clean bag | The date the bag was washed and dried |
| count bag | The date the bag was counted |
| weigh bag | The date the bag was weighed |
| 01_plastic_itemName | Count of plastic items removed (categories labelled 01 are land sourced) |
| 02_plastic_itemName | Count of plastic items removed (categories labelled 02 are marine sourced) |
| 03_plastic_itemName | Count of plastic items removed (categories labelled 03 are of an unknown source) |
| count: itemName | Count of non-plastic items removed |
| 04_plastic_itemName | Weight (g) of plastic items removed (categories labelled 04 are land sourced) |
| 05_plastic_itemName | Weight (g) of plastic items removed (categories labelled 05 are marine sourced) |
| 06_plastic_itemName | Weight (g) of plastic items removed (categories labelled 06 are of an unknown source) |
| weight: itemName | Weight (g) of non-plastic items removed |
| nonremovable_itemName | Items that were recorded during the survey but not removed either due to logistical reasons, burial or trapped in the sediments or rocks |
| comments | Comments that are specific to non-removed items |
Table 2: A description of the variables generated from the raw data and included within the database. Each variable is calculated for per individual beach clean survey (n count = 49, n weight = 43).
Variable Description
total_count total no. of all items removed from the beach
total_plasticCount total no. of plastic items removed from the beach (i.e., labelled plastic, medical or sanitary in the database)
total_count/100 total no. of all items standardised to 100 m survey transect
total_plasticCount/100 total no. of plastic items standardised to 100 m survey transect
land_plasticCount total no. of plastic land-based items removed from the beach
marine_plasticCount total no. of plastic marine-based items removed from the beach
unk_plasticCount total no. of plastic items from an unknown source removed from the beach
land_plasticCount/100 total no. of plastic land-based items standardised to 100 m survey transect
marine_plasticCount/100 total no. of plastic marine-based items standardised to 100 m survey transect
unk_plasticCount/100 total no. of plastic items from an unknown source standardised to 100 m survey transect
total_weight(g) total weight of all items removed from the beach
total_plasticWeight(g) total weight of plastic items removed from the beach (i.e., labelled plastic, medical or sanitary in the database)
total_ weight(g)/100 total weight of all items standardised to 100 m survey transect
total_ plasticWeight(g)/100 total weight of plastic items standardised to 100 m survey transect
land_ plasticWeight(g) total weight of plastic land-based items removed from the beach
marine_ plasticWeight(g) total weight of plastic marine-based items removed from the beach
unk_ plasticWeight(g) total weight of plastic items from an unknown source removed from the beach
land_ plasticWeight(g)/100 total weight of plastic land-based items standardised to 100 m survey transect
marine_ plasticWeight(g)/100 total weight of plastic marine-based items standardised to 100 m survey transect
unk_ plasticWeight(g)/100 total weight of plastic items from an unknown source standardised to 100 m survey transect
Table 3: A list of all plastic items recorded in the database (n = 77), including each variable name in the dataset, and a description that was used to identify each. This list follows the methodology of OSPAR, and each OSPAR ID is presented. The division of source, and sub-source (defined by Marine Conservation Society) is also provided.
Source Type Sub-Source Variable Item OSPAR ID
Land Public 01_plastic_yokes 4/6 pack yokes 1
01_plastic_pooBag Dog faeces bags 121
01_plastic_bags Bags (shopping) 2
01_plastic_bagsSmall Bags (freezer) 3
01_plastic_bottlesDrinks Bottles / containers: drinks 4
01_plastic_bottlesToiletries Bottles / containers: toiletries 7
01_plastic_bottlesLid Caps / lids 15
01_plastic_lighters Cigarette lighters / tobacco pouches 16
01_plastic_cigaretteButt Cigarette stubs 64
01_plastic_combsBrushSunglasses Combs / hairbrush / sunglasses 18
01_polystyrene_cups Cups (ply) 21
01_plastic_cups Cups (plastic) 21
01_plastic_cutleryStrawsTrays Cutlery / tray / straw 22
01_polystyrene_foodContainer Food container (ply) 6
01_plastic_foodContainer Food container (plastic) 6
01_plastic_packagingDomestic Packets (crisps / lolly / sweets) 19
01_plastic_pens Pens / pen lids 17
01_plastic_shoes Shoes / sandals 44
01_plastic_shotgun Shotgun cartridge 43
01_plastic_toys Toys / party poppers / fireworks / dummies 20
01_plastic_carParts Car parts 14
Sewage
01_sanitary_condoms Condoms 97
01_plastic_cottonBud Cotton bud (plastic) 98
01_sanitary_tampons Tampon applicators 100
01_sanitary_towels Towels / panty liners 99
01_sanitary_wetWipe Wet wipes NA
01_sanitary_toiletFreshener Toilet freshener 101
01_sanitary_other Other sanitary 102
Medical
01_medical_containers Medical container / tubes 103
01_medical_facemask Single-use face mask NA
01_medical_gloves Single-use gloves NA
01_medical_syringe Syringe / needles 104
01_medical_other Other medical 105
Marine Fishing 02_polystyrene_fishbox Fish box (ply) 34
02_plastic_fishbox Fish box (plastic) 34
02_plastic_fishline Fishing line 35
02_plastic_fishingnetSml Fishing net (0-50 cm) 115
02_plastic_fishingnetLrg Fishing net (>50 cm) 116
02_plastic_buoys Floats / buoys 37
02_plastic_glovesIndustrial Gloves (industrial) 113
02_plastic_lobsterFishTag Lobster / fish tags 114
02_plastic_lobsterCrabPot Lobster / crab pot & tops & hooks 26
02_plastic_octopusPot Octopus pots 27
02_plastic_jerryCan Jerry can 10
02_plastic_oysterNet Oyster nets / mussel bags 28
02_plastic_oysterTray Oyster trays 29
02_plastic_tahitians Sheeting from mussel culture 30
02_plastic_RopeStringCordSml String / cord / rope (thickness 0 – 1 cm) 32
02_plastic_RopeStringCordLrg String / cord / rope (thickness >1 cm) 31
02_plastic_stringDollyRope Dolly rope NA
02_plastic_tangledDollyRope Tangled dolly rope NA
02_plastic_tangledRope Tangled nets / cord / rope / string / dolly rope 33
Shipping
02_plastic_bagsMesh Bags (mesh) 24
02_plastic_bottlesCleaner Bottles / containers: cleaner 5
02_plastic_crates Crates 13
02_plastic_hardHat Hard hat 42
02_plastic_gunCartridge Injection gun cartridge 11
02_plastic_oilSml Oil containers / drums (0-50 cm) 8
02_plastic_oilLrg Oil containers / drums (>50 cm) 9
02_plastic_packagingIndustrial Packaging / plastic sheeting 40
02_plastic_strappingBand Strapping bands 39
Unknown Non-Sourced 03_plastic_bagEnds Bag ends 112
03_plastic_bottlesOther Bottles / containers: drums 12
03_plastic_buckets Buckets 38
03_plastic_foamSpongeInsulation Foam / sponge / insulation 45
03_plastic_glovesDomestic Gloves (domestic) 25
03_plastic_glowStick Light / glow sticks 36
03_plastic_fertiliser Fertiliser 23
03_plastic_fibreglass Fibreglass 41
03_plastic_nurdles Nurdles NA
03_plastic_other Other general 48
Fragments 03_polystyrene_fragmentSml Fragments (ply 0-2.5 cm) 117
03_polystyrene_fragmentMed Fragments (ply 2.5 – 50 cm) 46
03_polystyrene_fragmentLrg Fragments (ply >50 cm) 47
03_plastic_fragmentSml Fragments (plastic 0 – 2.5 cm) 117
03_plastic_fragmentMed Fragments (plastic 2.5 – 50 cm) 46
03_plastic_fragmentLrg Fragments (plastic >50 cm) 47