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You've probably heard that our oceans have become a plastic soup. But in fact, of all the plastic that enters Earth's oceans each year, just 1 percent has been observed floating on the surface. So where is the rest of it? 你可能已经听说了，我们的海洋里遍布塑料。但其实，每年进入海洋的塑料里，只有1%被看到漂浮在海面上。那剩下的去哪儿了？ This "missing" plastic has been a longstanding scientific question. To date, the search has focused on oceanic gyres such as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, the water column (the part of the ocean between the surface and the sea bed), the bottom of the ocean, and the stomachs of marine wildlife. “消失的”塑料是一个长期存在的科学问题。截至目前，搜寻的重点是海洋环流，比如大太平洋垃圾带、水柱（海洋表面和海床之间的部分）、海底和海洋动物的胃。 But our new research suggests ocean plastic is being transported back onshore and pushed permanently onto land away from the water's edge, where it often becomes trapped in vegetation. 但新的研究显示海洋塑料正在被运回岸上，被永远推到远离水边的陆地上，通常被困在植被中。 Of course, plastic has been reported on beaches around the world for decades. But there has been little focus on why and how coastal environments are a sink for marine debris. Our findings have big implications for how we tackle ocean plastic. | 
