A landmark study, published in the journal Science on Thursday 13 February, reveals just how much plastic makes its way in the world's oceans and the top countries responsible for the ocean-bound trash.

Last week, we joined the #OceanTrashTalk Tweet Chat to discuss the results of this new research conducted by a scientific working group at UC Santa Barbara’s National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (NCEAS), and called on the dive community to share its views and the underwater perspective of the global marine debris problem.

We were excited to join marine debris experts including Jenna Jambeck, an assistant professor of environmental engineering at the University of Georgia and lead author of the study, to discuss the growing problem of plastic in our ocean and what we can do to solve it.

"I hope the attention this research is getting will lead to global cooperation for solutions" said Jenna Jambeck.

"Plastic pollution is a people problem, not an ocean problem" commented Nicholas Mallos, Director of the Trash Free Seas Alliance*. "WE are the solution!"

If you missed the #OceanTrashTalk Tweet Chat, you can catch up on the online conversation with the storify of this Twitter event hosted by the Ocean Conservancy:

[<a href="//storify.com/OurOcean/oceantrashtalk" target="_blank">View the story "#OceanTrashTalk" on Storify</a>] *As a founding member of the Trash Free Seas Alliance, Project AWARE is working with the Ocean Conservancy who is spearheading the Alliance and corporations, economists, waste experts, and other NGOs to identify ways for communities to profitably gather, separate, sell and store plastic waste. An important step in the ultimate goal of stopping the flow of plastics into the ocean while advancing the economic and social well-being of the communities served.   Photo: Norik Sub, Slovenia - Underwater Bin