Marine Debris in the Caribbean Region

Abstract

The Wider Caribbean Region is generally defined as the geographic area including the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and the adjacent waters of the Atlantic Ocean from south of 30° N latitude and within 200 nautical miles of the Atlantic coast of the Caribbean States (Cartagena Convention 1983). The states of the Wider Caribbean Region include 12 continental states, 13 island states, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, 3 overseas departments of France, a territory (St. Maarten) shared by the Netherlands and France, and 11 dependent territories (WRI 1992) (Fig. 3.1)