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Trash Free Waters

  • Congrats to our TFW Video Competition Winners from California State Polytechnic University-Pomona!

    Marketing students from California State Polytechnic University-Pomona were recently announced as winners of the 2020 American Marketing Association (AMA)- EPA Trash Free Waters Video and Marketing Brief Competition. View the student's 30-second video titled "Repair the Future."

  • Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) TFW Grant Awardees Announced

    The EPA will provide over $725,000 total to the City of Erie, Pennsylvania and the University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh to implement trash collection projects to reduce trash in Lake Erie and Lake Michigan. This funding is made available through Trash Free Waters Grants under the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI). 

  • Trash Free Waters Article Series

    Read the latest article in the Trash Free Waters article series: Plastic Pollution in the Mississippi River - Regional Cooperation for a Transboundary Problem.  Also check out our monthly newsletter, "The Rapids."

  • Escaped Trash Assessment Protocol - An Adaptable Method for Collecting Data on Trash

    The Escaped Trash Assessment Protocol (ETAP), developed by the EPA's Trash Free Waters Program, is a quantitative survey tool which provides a standard method for collecting and assessing litter data. Download the ETAP reference manual and Excel sheet tool to start using ETAP to collect litter data. 

Most of the trash that pollutes our rivers, lakes, estuaries, and oceans comes from sources on land.  Plastic trash, in particular, threatens human health, aquatic ecosystems, and the economy. EPA’s Trash Free Waters program is reducing the volume of trash entering our waters by working with partners to implement collaborative solutions that target land-based sources. View the Trash Free Waters program factsheet to learn more. 

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