Mary Bowerman

USA TODAY

Researchers found almost 38 million pieces of trash that washed up on a tiny uninhabited island in the Pacific Ocean.

Henderson Island, which was designated a World Heritage Site in part because of its bird life, has the highest density of plastic debris reported anywhere on the planet, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science. Researchers estimate there are 37.7 million pieces of plastic littering the beaches.

"Far from being the pristine 'deserted island' that people might imagine of such a remote place, Henderson Island is a shocking but typical example of how plastic debris is affecting the environment on a global scale,” Jennifer Lavers, a research scientist at University of Tasmania and study author, said in a statement.

The island, which is part of the U.K.’s Pitcairn Island territory, is in the center of the South Pacific gyre ocean current, making it a bullseye for debris carried in the ocean currents from South America or fishing boats, according to a statement from University of Tasmania Institute for Marine and Antarctic studies (IMAS).

"What's happened on Henderson Island shows there's no escaping plastic pollution even in the most distant parts of our oceans," Laver said.

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Lavers, who is the study’s lead author, was on a scientific expedition to the island led by the British nature conservation charity RSPB, when she and researchers made the shocking discover.

According to the study, 3,750 new pieces of plastic wash up each day on one beach alone. Lavers said there is likely, even more, plastic on the island, since researchers were unable to sample along the island’s cliffs and rocky coastline.

Lavers said Henderson Island is a reminder that most of the 300 million tons of plastic produced each year is not recycled, and can end up in the ocean.

"Research has shown that more than 200 species are known to be at risk from eating plastic, and 55% of the world's seabirds, including two species found on Henderson Island, are at risk from marine debris," Lavers said.

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