How much plastic enters the ocean every year and where does it come from?

An estimated 11 million tonnes of plastic enter the world's oceans every year, the equivalent of a rubbish truck full of plastic entering the sea every minute. Almost all of it originates on land: discarded drink bottles swept into stormwater drains, packaging carried through rivers during flooding, industrial pellets escaping manufacturing facilities, and fishing equipment lost offshore. Without significant intervention, that figure could almost triple by 2040. The ocean does not create the problem; it collects the consequences of inadequate waste management across cities, waterways, and ecosystems.

Why is ocean plastic cleanup not enough to solve the plastic pollution crisis?

Ocean cleanup is essential, but it addresses the end of the problem rather than the source. By the time plastic reaches open water, it has already travelled through urban stormwater systems, river networks, and coastal ecosystems, often fragmenting into microplastics that become practically impossible to recover at scale. Only around 9 percent of plastic waste is successfully recycled worldwide, while the majority is landfilled, incinerated, or leaks into the environment before any ocean cleanup intervention can reach it. The scientific and policy consensus is increasingly focused upstream: intercepting plastic before it enters waterways produces far greater environmental returns than recovering it from the open ocean.

What are microplastics and why are they a public health concern?

Microplastics are tiny fragments produced when sunlight, waves, and weather break larger plastic objects into progressively smaller pieces. They have now been detected in Arctic sea ice, Antarctic snow, drinking water, agricultural soils, seafood, and human blood. Researchers are continuing to investigate the long-term health implications, but the growing body of evidence suggests plastic pollution is no longer confined to remote oceans; it has become embedded in the global environment itself. For communicators and organisations working on environmental issues, this shift from a coastal problem to a systemic public health concern fundamentally changes the narrative and the audiences that need to be reached.

How should environmental organisations communicate the upstream causes of ocean plastic pollution to engage a broader audience?

Effective communication on ocean plastic shifts the audience's frame of reference from a distant patch of floating debris to the everyday objects and systems in their own communities: the drink bottle left beside a suburban street, the stormwater drain at the end of the block, the river running through their city. Third Hemisphere's approach to environmental communications anchors each campaign in a clear causal chain, connecting local behaviours and infrastructure failures to global consequences, because audiences act on problems they recognise as proximate, not abstract. This narrative architecture, built on specific evidence rather than generalised alarm, is what earns coverage in outlets like the AFR, The Australian, and ABC News and sustains engagement beyond a single news cycle. Third Hemisphere works with environmental organisations, government bodies, and corporate partners across Australia and Singapore to develop these evidence-led communications programmes.

What does a strategic communications programme for an environmental or sustainability issue typically cost in Australia?

Third Hemisphere structures fees as a total investment for the agreed programme term, payable in monthly instalments, rather than as open-ended arrangements. For a focused environmental communications programme covering earned media, stakeholder engagement, and digital content, engagements typically run across a six- to twelve-month term; a six-month programme is generally sufficient to establish a credible narrative and build measurable media presence, while twelve-month programmes are suited to organisations preparing for policy consultations, capital raises, or major campaign launches. Total fees vary according to scope, channel mix, and the complexity of the stakeholder landscape. Third Hemisphere provides a detailed scope and investment proposal following an initial strategy conversation, ensuring the programme is sized to the commercial and reputational objectives at hand.

How long does it take to build credible media presence and public authority on an environmental issue like ocean plastic pollution?

Building genuine authority on a complex environmental issue typically requires a minimum of six months of consistent, evidence-led communications activity. The first two months are usually devoted to establishing the foundational narrative, key messages, and high-impact assets; months three through six focus on placing that story across Tier 1 national and trade outlets, building relationships with the journalists and policy audiences who cover environmental and public health beats. Third Hemisphere's Waterfall Strategy ensures every channel, from earned media to owned content and stakeholder briefings, is anchored by the same core messages, so each placement amplifies the next rather than dissipating effort across disconnected tactics. Organisations that attempt to compress this timeline into a single announcement cycle rarely sustain the credibility required to influence policy or investor behaviour.

What makes Third Hemisphere a stronger choice than a generalist agency for communicating on ocean plastic or environmental sustainability issues?

The difference lies in strategic depth and the ability to connect environmental evidence to the commercial and policy audiences that matter most. A generalist agency may secure a placement; Third Hemisphere builds the case that positions an organisation as the credible authority across the full stakeholder map, from journalists and regulators to investors and community groups. Third Hemisphere's Proprietary Reputation Monitoring and Intelligence Platform tracks how narratives on issues like ocean plastic pollution are forming in real time, allowing the team to identify where the conversation is heading and place clients ahead of it rather than behind it. For organisations in Australia and Singapore working at the intersection of environmental science, policy, and commercial strategy, that combination of intelligence, earned media expertise, and stakeholder communications is what creates the conditions for lasting reputational and commercial outcomes.

The Ocean Isn't Where the Plastic Problem Begins. It's Where It Will End.