Introduction

COI’s Environmental Plastic Assessment Program (EPAP) addresses one of today’s most pressing environmental concerns: marine and aquatic debris. EPAP combines beach cleanups with data collection, enabling citizen scientists to remove debris while systematically documenting plastic pollution.

Since 2012, EPAP has engaged participants at beaches and waterways around the world. Its simple, low-cost methods help communities measure how much and what types of plastic are accumulating over time, building data that can support research, education, public awareness, and informed action.

Why EPAP Matters

Cleaning up plastic is important—but understanding what is accumulating, where it is accumulating, and how it changes over time can help communities move beyond cleanup alone. EPAP provides a consistent way to document plastic debris, helping identify patterns and potential sources of pollution. This approach helps target prevention efforts and improve local waste management practices.

How EPAP Works

• Community Engagement: EPAP engages students, schools, businesses, environmental organizations, and community volunteers in collecting shoreline plastic-debris data using standardized methods. This initiative is crucial for communities aiming to minimize their plastic footprint.
  
• Training and Tools: COI provides training materials, standardized field forms, and guidance to help participants collect and record consistent field data. Survey results are submitted to COI and added to our online EPAP database where participants can compare their data with other locations.
  
• Impact: With just a few hours each month, participating teams can build a record of plastic debris at their location, offering insight into plastic pollution trends and effectiveness of local mitigation efforts.

Key Achievements

• Since 2012: 27 locations cleaned | 3,360 participants trained | 60,000 lbs & 336,000 pieces removed
  

Explore the EPAP Database

Data collected through EPAP surveys is added to our online database, where you can explore survey locations and results from participating communities. See what we're finding and how plastic debris differs across shorelines and over time.

[Explore the Data →]

Join the EPAP Team!

You can help protect your local shoreline while contributing to a global effort to understand and combat plastic pollution. Whether you adopt a beach, join us as an intern, or participate in another way, your efforts help expand our understanding of plastic pollution across communities and coastlines.

Adopt a Beach

• Through our Beach Adoption Program, individuals and teams can monitor a local shoreline using EPAP’s standardized survey methods. Participants receive training and the tools needed to conduct surveys, document plastic debris, and contribute their findings to COI’s growing EPAP database.

Become an Intern

• College students and recent graduates can gain hands-on experience through COI’s Internship Program, with opportunities that may include EPAP field surveys, data management, program coordination, and community events.

Other Ways to Participate

• COI hosts four community beach cleanups each year, where volunteers can help remove debris, learn more about plastic pollution, and see aspects of EPAP in action. Sign up for our newsletter, follow us on social media at the bottom of this page, or check back on our website for upcoming cleanup announcements.

For more information, please contact David Schwartz, COI Education Director, at [email protected].

Support EPAP

Join our 2026 campaign to raise $70,000 for EPAP. Your support helps us train citizen scientists, equip survey teams, expand shoreline monitoring, and gather data that drives local and global change. Together, we can make a difference for our oceans' future. To contribute, please specify “EPAP” in the “Message of Support” on our donation page.