Ban the deliberate release of balloons.

The humble balloon and fragments produced when they burst have been identified as the number one risk of causing death from floating rubbish by University of Tasmania scientists.

PhD student Lauren Roman said the study found that although hard plastic accounts for the vast majority of debris ingested it is far less likely to kill than soft plastics such as balloons.

Sea turtles are particularly at risk because they eat Jellies which balloon fragments can easily be mistaken for.