Here in the San Francisco Bay Area, we live next to a bay that is separated from the Pacific Ocean by a small peninsula. We have a lot of coastline, and unfortunately now we have a lot of "nurdles" washing up. What's a nurdle? It's a tiny pellet made of plastic. It's a "pre-production polymer," which means it's a tiny piece of plastic that's going to be melted and formed into a plastic product. 

Large quantities of nurdles are transported across the seas through worldwide shipping commerce, and now they're washing up on our shores in greater quantities than ever. Speculation is that the strong winter weather contributes to their washing up on shore, and that nurdles are released from shipments accidentally.

This is a serious danger to fish and birds. They can swallow them because they look like fish eggs and insect larvae. Marine life cannot digest them, and the nurdles carry toxins that are then passed on up through the food chain, even into the fish we eat. 

There's a group called Save Our Shores that is trying to do something about it. They are based in Santa Cruz, California, and are working along the California coast to raise awareness and work on clean up. 

 What can we do about it? Save Our Shores is trying to raise awareness about the problem. I am curious as to whether others around the world who live near the ocean are seeing nurdles on their own beaches. If you do, take a picture and send your photos to photos@saveourshores.org. They are collecting data and would surely appreciate your assistance. 

The name "nurdle" sounds funny but the problem is not. According to A Way With Words Radio, the definition of the word is:

nurdle n. a grain, pellet, granule, or other small piece of a material, especially as part of a large quantity (such as foam kernels used as packing material) (in pronunciation-based spellings) a nodule a quantity of a gel or semi-solid a thing of unknown name (doodad, thingamajig, etc.). 

The word seems to have other meanings, such as found on Wiktionary, to mean a shot in the game of cricket and the amount of toothpaste that goes on a tooth brush.