Ryan lives in San Juan Capistrano, California, near the Pacific Ocean. He loves the ocean and the creatures that call it home. But he knows that these animals face a growing problem: trash.
Every year, billions of pounds of trash get into Earth’s oceans. This trash comes from many different places, such as city streets and off trucks heading to landfills. Wind, rainwater, and rivers carry the trash into the ocean.
The trash Ryan worries about most is plastic, like bottles and bags. Some ocean animals get tangled in plastic. Others, like whales and turtles, eat it by mistake.