The California Ocean Litter Strategy was jointly developed by OPC and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Marine Debris Program. The Strategy outlines actions that stakeholders and OPC can take from 2018 through 2024 to prevent and reduce ocean litter in California.

To get involved, sign up below to receive emails about the implementation process and upcoming webinars or events – subscribe to OPC’s general email announcements and California Ocean Litter Strategy project email announcements.  

Project Updates

California Ocean Litter Strategy Accomplishments Report 

In May 2026, the California Ocean Litter Prevention Strategy Accomplishment’s Report: January 2018 – August 2025 was published by the Ocean Protection Council (OPC), in partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Marine Debris Program (NOAA MDP), California Sea Grant, and the University of Southern California Sea Grant. 

The Accomplishments Report serves to highlight the collaborative and meaningful work California entities have done towards addressing ocean litter and plastic pollution in California, (a) describing what has been accomplished towards each goal, (b) highlighting the work of partner organizations, and (c) providing a status for each goal to identify where ongoing and/or future efforts are potentially needed. 

California Ocean Litter Strategy Webinar

A California Ocean Litter Strategy webinar was held on July 10, 2024:

• Watch the Recording

The webinar included presentations by:

• California Department of Fish and Wildlife on abandoned and lost fishing gear;
• UCSB Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory on a modeling tool to combat plastic pollution;
• Moore Institute for Plastic Pollution Research on a recent study examining global producer responsibility for plastic pollution; and
• Surfrider Foundation and California Product Stewardship Council on recent policy announcements.

Past meeting recordings and webinar slides are available on the Project Resources page. 

Ocean Litter Strategy Workgroup Updates

The Ocean Litter Strategy Stakeholders have developed workgroups centering around each of the six goals in the Strategy. There are no upcoming workgroup meetings; information about future workgroup activities will be posted here.

Photo Credit: Sonoma Coast Surfrider