Islands such as these are like canaries in a coal mine and it's increasingly urgent that we act on the warnings they are giving us, said Lavers.

“像这样的屿就像煤矿里的金丝雀，我们越来越迫切地需要根据它们发出的警告采取行动，”说。

Lavers explained in a statement that only a few hundred people live on the islands, and so the sheer volume of plastic present there reflects how the material moves around the oceans.

拉弗在一份声明中解说，只有几百人居住，所塑料的体积反映了海洋中塑料的运动方式。

Lavers said: Unlike Henderson Island, where most identifiable debris was fishing-related, the plastic on Cocos (Keeling) was largely single-use consumer items such as bottle caps and straws, as well as a large number of shoes and thongs.

“与亨德森不同的是，基林的塑料垃圾大多是一次性消费品，比如瓶盖和吸管，及大量的鞋子和丁字裤。亨德森的垃圾大多与捕鱼有关。”