Charting Plastic Shores: Environmental NGOs Bridging Historical Data Gaps for Coastal Litter Management in Cyprus

The dataset includes coastal litter data acquired through voluntary environmental NGO initiatives, used to investigate the coastal pollution in Cyprus from 2014 to 2018— a period characterized by inactive national monitoring efforts, infrequent beach cleanups, and low public awareness of marine litter issues. This dataset provides the earliest documentation of coastal litter densities in Cyprus, while also underscoring the harmful and variable nature of certain types of debris. Although pollution rates were persistent over this timeframe, mainly driven by recreational activities, deliberate dumping, and sea-based transport, litter quantities declined in 2021, coinciding with behavioural changes induced by the COVID-19 pandemic.