Marine debris removal season at Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument ends with record-breaking results

This year, the conclusion of the marine debris removal season in Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument resulted in the largest amount of marine debris removed from the site in a mission season since NOAA began removal efforts in 1996.  

Through a partnership with the NOAA Marine Debris Program, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and other partners, a team of 16 from the Papahānaumokuākea Marine Debris Project removed 298,180 pounds of marine debris from the monument during three missions from April to October 2024. The removed marine debris includes 191,860 pounds of derelict fishing nets, 4,600 pounds of abandoned and derelict vessels and 101,720 pounds of plastic and other debris. The team also released four Hawaiian green sea turtles entangled in derelict fishing nets. 

Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, a UNESCO World Heritage site, encompasses a remote group of islands, reefs and atolls in the northwestern sector of the Hawaiian Islands. The site is home to thousands of species of fish and wildlife, — some that are only found in the Hawaiian Islands — including threatened and endangered species such as the Hawaiian monk seal, Hawaiian green sea turtle and Laysan albatross. Papahānaumokuākea is a sacred Native Hawaiian landscape and is home to numerous important archaeological sites. Marine debris removal is of critical importance to both the natural and cultural components of the monument.

The team spent 77 days in the monument, focusing their efforts on Lalo (French Frigate Shoals, Kānemiloha‘i), Kamokuokamohoali‘i (Maro Reef, Ko‘anako‘a), Kamole (Laysan Island, Kauō), Kapou (Lisianski Island, Papa‘āpoho), Manawai (Pearl and Hermes Atoll, Holoikauaua), Kuaihelani (Midway Island, Pihemanu) and Hōlanikū (Kure Atoll, Moku Pāpapa). The Papahānaumokuākea Marine Debris Project team returns every season to remove the backlog of debris and new accrual of nets that continue to wash into the monument through ocean currents. 

Kamokuokamohoali‘i is known for some of the highest amounts of marine debris in the monument.

However, continued removal efforts are making an impact. 

Derek LeVault, leader for the second mission of 2024, said, “Having worked hard for several years straight to clean up the mess at Kamokuokamohoaliʻi, the change is really starting to become evident. Two years ago, odds were that a swim over a patch reef would have turned up a big pile of marine debris. Today, the same types of reefs are seen with scraps of nets, but seldom are the largest, sprawling bundles being encountered. There is some real satisfaction in seeing the difference our efforts are making.” 

The Papahānaumokuākea Marine Debris Project has led this effort since 2021 and removed over 1 million pounds of marine debris from the monument. Learn more about this project, the cultural and ecological importance of Papahānaumokuākea and the history of the removal missions on the NOAA Marine Debris Program website. 

The NOAA Marine Debris Program is supporting this work through a five-year grant to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) using $5.8M in funding provided by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda. This funding to NFWF is being matched by $6 million from philanthropists Marc and Lynne Benioff, as part of their commitment to improving and safeguarding ocean health, for a total investment of $12 million from Fiscal Year 2022 to Fiscal Year 2026. Additional funding for these missions is provided by the NOAA Damage Assessment, Remediation, and Restoration Program with funding from the M/V Casitas Trustee Council, and the NOAA Fisheries Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center. NOAA’s National Sea Grant Office provided additional Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding to test innovative technologies, such as new detection, cutting, and lifting tools for more efficient large-scale removal.