Temporal trends of marine litter in a tropical recreational beach: A case study of Mkomani beach, Kenya

Six marine litter standing stock surveys were carried out to determine the influence of monsoon on the temporal abundance and composition of macro-litter in Mkomani beach, Mombasa Kenya. Foam (0.073 items m−2) and plastic (0.042 items m−2) fragments had the highest densities. The brand audit indicated that 66.9% of branded marine litter was of Kenyan origin. Food product packaging contributed 78.4% of the branded litter with PET bottles being the most abundant type of packaging (48.2%). Foreign products contributed 35.6% of branded marine litter during South East Monsoon (SEM) whereas only 11.7% during North-East Monsoon (NEM). Worth noting, PET packaging dominated during SEM (53.6%) compared to NEM (20.2%). Mkomani beach could be considered “extremely dirty” with a Clean-Coast Index greater than 20. The study concludes that monsoons influences litter diversity, richness and evenness. •Monsoons influence temporal abundance and composition of stranded litter.•Monsoons influence litter diversity, richness and evenness.•Foam and plastic fragments were the major contributors to marine litter.•Food products packaging were abundant in North East compared to South East Monsoon.•Foreign products of branded litter were high in SEM compared to NEM.