The International Plastic Pellet Count 2026

This year’s International Plastic Pellet Count starts on Saturday, May 2nd and we’re looking for organizations and individuals across America & beyond to join this international month of action.

Plastic pellets, also known as nurdles, are the raw material used to make many familiar plastic products like water bottles, grocery bags and food containers. Unfortunately, these tiny plastics are frequently spilled, leaked, or dumped into the environment, especially our waterways, during manufacturing and transport. As a result, an estimated 10 trillion plastic pellets now enter our oceans each year. 

Once present in our environment, plastic pellets can cause harm to fish and birds. If these animals mistake plastic pellets for fish eggs or other natural food sources, they can starve with their stomachs and throats full of plastic.

The International Plastic Pellet Count is an international month of action where volunteers around the world search for plastic pellets in riverbanks, lakeshores and beaches and record what they find, so we can all have a better understanding of where this pollution is happening and make the case for action.

Here are the ways you can get involved:

• Go out and look for plastic pellets in your nearby rivers, streams, wetlands or ocean beaches by yourself, with friends and family or invite members of your community to join you. Pellet counts take as little as 10 minutes and make a big impact. Register today. 
  • Not sure where to go to find pellets? Nurdle Patrol has put together a map of where plastic pellets have been found. It highlights trouble spots and shows where there is a gap in information. We also have a map of the facilities that produce plastic pellets and other pre-production microplastics. 
• Join a pellet count in your area (note: most of these events are taking place on Saturday, May 2nd):

• Want your organization to be an official co-sponsor? Contact Grace Vickers at [email protected]. 

Note: Data from any pellet counts that happen in the month of May 2026 will be considered part of this year’s International Plastic Pellet Count.

Learn more about what it takes to do a pellet count and how to record what you find with our International Plastic Pellet Count toolkit.

Are you doing a pellet count?
This 30 minute webinar that will tell you everything you need to know about doing a pellet count.

Read more about the 2025 International Plastic Pellet Count in our official report.