Abstract
Flow and sources of marine litter washed up on the remote island coasts in the North Pacific Ocean and on the west coast of North America were estimated using disposable lighters because those items have the out flow information of country or location. The outflow country can be classified by a body shape and punched codes on the tank bottom, and the outflow location can be distinguished by a shop address or telephone number printed on the tank surface. From August 2003 to December 2014, total of 6,430 lighters were collected on the 124 beaches. Flow of lighters elicited by the relationship from the outflow locations to the collected sites was as follows: The lighters flowed out of the East Asia （include Japan） wash up on the remote islands of Northwest Hawaiian Islands to Hawaiian Islands while drifting eastward in the North Pacific Ocean, and they reach to the west coast of North America, although the number is a little. After 3.11 tsunami, the lighters from east coast of Japan （Tohoku region） increased on the Midway Atoll. Main outflow areas of lighters were the Pacific coast side of East Asia. In Japan, it is same side including those enclosed water area of Tokyo Bay, Ise Bay and Seto Inland Sea.
