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The projects funded through these competitions represent the NOAA Marine Debris Program’s commitment to supporting the Agreement's environmental goals, including the need to take action to prevent and reduce marine debris in order to preserve human health and marine and coastal ecosystems, prevent the loss of biodiversity, and mitigate the costs and impacts of marine debris.
Active USMCA Projects
Parley Foundation is working in select cities in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico to raise awareness of plastic consumption and engage local businesses in strategies to reduce consumer plastic waste.
CAT Action Treasury, Inc. and project partners are helping to remove illegal fishing gear in the Upper Gulf of California, Mexico, and building awareness in local communities to better protect the endangered vaquita porpoise.
The Vermilion Sea Institute is expanding the work and research of local youth in the Aventureros educational program to support the Bahía de los Ángeles community in Baja California, Mexico in reducing single-use plastics and waste.
The Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey is working with stakeholders across Monterrey, Mexico to design, implement, and operate a recycling program that will improve waste collection and prevent plastic waste dumping and littering.
The Parley Foundation is working with coastal communities in the Gulf of Mexico and the Mexican Caribbean to collect and recycle fishing gear, remove debris from marine protected areas, and promote education.
The University of Texas at Austin Marine Science Institute is working with partners in Mexico to expand their Nurdle Patrol monitoring project while increasing collaboration among scientists, resource managers, and industry representatives in the Gulf of Mexico.
Working with the local community, the City and Borough of Yakutat, Alaska, is removing marine debris from 50 miles of shoreline, and partnering with tribal, federal, and local organizations to conduct initial assessments followed by cleanup and outreach.
Partners across the Gulf of Maine are working together to prevent and remove marine debris by engaging volunteers, local businesses, coastal communities, fishing industries, and environmental justice populations in learning about the impact of marine debris on natural resources and taking action to make a difference.
Through the Salish Synergy project, the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation and partners are detecting and removing medium- to large-scale marine debris, including derelict fishing gear, along Washington's outer coast and the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
The Ocean Conservancy’s Global Ghost Gear Initiative is coordinating with partners in California and in Mexico to better manage and prevent the loss of fishing gear and launch the North American Net Collection Initiative.
WILDCOAST reduced ocean-bound single-use plastic waste and other debris by capturing trash in the Tijuana River and through a city-wide campaign to raise awareness, improve infrastructure, and help the region transition away from single-use plastics.
In the Tijuana River Valley, the Southwest Wetlands Interpretive Association and Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve are repurposing and upcycling debris items to prevent and remove marine debris from the Tijuana River watershed and Pacific Ocean.
The Council of the Great Lakes Region is working to prevent and reduce plastic debris by expanding the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup program and launching a new binational Great Lakes Circular Economy Partnership to help the Great Lakes create a circular economy.