In fact, the smallest pieces can easily blend in with the sand. However, a new method developed by Australia’s Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) researchers could change the game.

It’s based on a new Beached Plastic Debris Index (BPDI), which analyses the light reflected by the various items found on beaches.

Its algorithms use high-definition images from the WorldView-3 observation satellite and are capable of identifying small clusters of plastic on any beach with great precision. The aim is then to initiate clean-up operations that were not necessarily planned.

Plastic waste can be harmful to many animals, especially in areas unfrequented by humans. That’s why it’s especially important to study the presence of plastic on remote or isolated beaches.

To validate the effectiveness of this tool, tests have been successfully carried out on a beach in Gippsland, Australia. The next step will be to establish partnerships with environmental protection organisations to deploy this solution on a large scale.

In Spain, a separate research team from the Institut de Ciències del Mar (ICM) and the University of Cadiz have succeeded in developing an initial, fairly precise map of the extent of plastic pollution in the Mediterranean Sea, again thanks to the study of satellite images taken over the sea.

A total of 300,000 images were examined, resulting in an initial map indicating that the quantity of floating plastic recorded over the period 2015-2021 could cover an area of around 95 sq km.

Every year, an additional 11 million tonnes of plastic are dumped into the oceans, according to the American NGO Ocean Conservancy.