Pilot monitoring marine litter on Dutch Caribbean Islands: St. Eustatius 2024-2025

Marine litter poses significant environmental, ecological, and socio-economic challenges globally, and this issue is particularly acute in the Caribbean Netherlands, where marine ecosystems and tourism-driven economies are at risk. This pilot project, commissioned by Rijkswaterstaat/ Ministry of Infrastructure and Water management and conducted on Sint Eustatius, aimed to evaluate the feasibility of implementing a long-term beach litter monitoring program based on the Modified OSPAR methodology. The study aligns with broader eAorts under the Caribbean Netherlands Nature and Environment Policy Plan (NEPP) and the Cartagena Convention to address marine litter in the Wider Caribbean Region. The pilot project involved selection and training of STENAPA as local surveyors, site data collection, site selection, litter surveys, and cooperation with local stakeholders. Two sites, Compagnie Bay and Zeelandia Beach, were selected for monitoring and two surveys at each site documented litter composition.