Kuala Lampur, Nov. 27 -- KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 27 - More than 8,300 volunteers have collected over 28,500kg of trash from Malaysia's coastlines as part of this year's International Coastal Cleanup Day (ICC), with plastic bottles, cigarette butts, and plastic grocery bags once again topping the list of pollutants.

Coordinated by Reef Check Malaysia (RCM), the year-round cleanup activities revealed that 97 per cent of all items collected were made from non-biodegradable materials. The top three items alone accounted for nearly 200,000 individual pieces of litter.

While the findings highlight persistent challenges, RCM chief operating officer Theresa Ng said there was a surge in community action.

"There is also evidence of increasing awarenes...