Plastic litter on Britain’s beaches has reached record levels, endangering whales, dolphins and seabirds, an environmental charity survey said on Thursday.

The Marine Conservation Society, which campaigns for cleaner beaches and seas, said plastic litter has increased by 126 percent since its first survey in 1994.

Scores of marine wildlife species, including seals and turtles, have died after eating plastic or drowning after getting tangled in debris or old fishing nets, it said.

“The results are truly shocking,” said Emma Snowden, the society’s litter projects coordinator. “Plastics are of particular concern as they could persist in the marine environment for centuries with fatal consequences for marine wildlife.”

In the last decade, the amount of plastic drinks bottles has risen by 67 percent, plastic bags by 54 percent and cigarette butts by 44 percent, the society said.

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