"NEW YORK — Plastic junk is floating widely on the world's oceans, but there's less of it than expected, a study says.

Such ocean pollution has drawn attention in recent years because of its potential harm to fish and other wildlife.

The new work drew on results from an around-the-world cruise by a research ship that towed a mesh net at 141 sites, as well as other studies. Researchers estimated the total amount of floating plastic debris in open ocean at 7,000 to 35,000 tons."

Malcolm Ritter reports for the Associated Press June 30, 2014. [2]