The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP) spans 617,763 sq miles - more than twice the size of France, and contains at least 79,000 tons of plastic, research found last month.

上月的一项调查发现，大太平洋垃圾带的面积达到61万7763平方英里（约合160万平方公里），是法国面积的两倍多，其中含有至少7.9万吨塑料。

Most of it is made up of “ghost gear” – parts of abandoned and lost fishing gear, such as nets and ropes – often from illegal fishing vessels.

塑料主要由“幽灵渔具”构成，包括废弃或丢失的渔网、绳索等渔具的组件，而这些渔具大都来自非法捕鱼船只。

Nearly half the debris collected from the Great Pacific garbage patch consisted of discarded fishing nets (The Ocean Cleanup Foundation)

Ghost gear kills more than 100,000 whales, dolphins and seals each year, according to scientific surveys. Seabirds and other marine life are increasingly being found dead with stomachs full of small pieces of plastic.

科学调查显示，幽灵渔具每年导致超过10万头鲸、海豚和海豹死亡。越来越多的海鸟和其他海洋生物被发现死亡时胃里装满了小块塑料。

More than 8 million tons of plastic is dumped into our oceans every year, according to the US-based Plastic Oceans Foundation.

总部位于美国的塑料海洋基金会表示，每年有超过800万吨塑料被倾倒入海洋。

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