Mapping patterns of marine debris in the main Hawaiian Islands using aerial imagery and spatial analysis

On Mar 11, 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami brought devastation upon the lives of thousands and swept millions of tons of debris into the Pacific Ocean. Soon after, a sudden influx of marine debris began to appear on North American coastlines and by September 2012, the first confirmed piece of Japanese Tsunami Marine Debris was reported in the Main Hawaiian Islands). Hawaii is uniquely situated in close proximity to the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre and the Subtropical Convergence Zone, which concentrates marine debris and delivers the highest reported debris accumulations in the US Pacific Coast (2012). The aerial surveys were conducted from a Cessna 206 aircraft over the coastlines of Niihau, Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, Lanai, Maui, Kahoolawe, and Hawaii. This high-resolution aerial imagery analysis is the first comprehensive survey of the MHI for marine debris, and it proved to be a useful method for detecting all points of debris on the coastline at a moment in time.