Non-profit group turns beach trash into top-notch art

Marine pollution is a massive global dilemma, and some coastal communities fight a never-ending battle to stop the tide of trash washing ashore. In Oregon, there's a non-profit organization that collects discarded materials from beaches and turns them into giant sculptures of aquatic animals.

According to Washed Ashore, ninety percent of the waste they collect is petroleum-based, mostly plastic debris, and they are able to convert ninety-eight percent of this junk into art. A walk-through replica of an ocean gyre; a styrofoam coral reef; a giant fish; a plastic bottle sea jelly; and an oil-spill replica are just some of the pieces they have exhibited in various zoos and aquariums around the U.S.

Check out the video below to learn more about their creative process.

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