One man's inspirational fight against pollution nets results

A recent study in the journal Science estimates that as much as 14 million tons of plastic trash wound up in the world's oceans in 2010. If nothing changes, that amount could double in 10 years in some places.

One man in California is on a mission. He's trying to clean up wetlands that are filled with plastic waste before the debris floats into the Pacific Ocean. CBS News' Omar Villafranca reports how the man is sparking a movement.

Lenny Arkinstall started a one-man-with-a-boat endeavor in a small Long Beach, California, marina that needed help.

"This place was filled with tires and TVs and sofas and styrofoam and cups and ice chests," Arkinstall said.

He skims the surface, dredges underwater and has kept cleaning the Cerritos Bahia Marina for 23 years.

It was his idea to corral the floating mess with fishermen's booms.

"We pull out the balls for the kids that lose them, and we return 'em to the schools," Arkinstall said.

His personal commitment to cleaning the surrounding 100 acres caught the eye of the county government, which sent over sanitation workers with trucks to help.

He has not always been an environmentalist.

"This is all new to me," Arkinstall said. "I became an environmentalist by doing this. Before this, I was an investment consultant in Century City, and I had no clue."

He noticed plastic trash was also killing wildlife that confused it for food.

He came to the marina after losing his job and his home.

"I'm blessed," Arkinstall said. "I thought it was nightmare. It was a nightmare part of my time. It humbled me, and as I started cleaning, I started feeling better about myself."

His volunteer work led to awards. Former Long Beach City Councilman Rob Webb was there in 2012 when Arkinstall received the city's first Aquatic Capital of America Foundation award.

"We call that award 'The Lenny' now," Webb said. "We have more snowy white egrets and birds that we didn't see when we were kids. A lot of that is because of Lenny."

In the course of 20 years, Lenny estimates hundreds of tons of debris have been pulled out of the water.

Research released last month found 8 million tons of plastic trash ends up in the ocean a year. Jenna Jamback of the University of Georgia led the study.

"Five bags of plastic for every foot of coastline in the world." Jamback said.

Arkinstall said it is overwhelming.

"I've known over the years not to throw in the towel. My guys that come and help me go, 'Lenny this is useless,'" he said. "I go, 'No, just keep going at it.'"

As the years went on, more volunteers joined his one-man-against-the-odds effort. So he set up the Los Cerritos Wetlands Stewards that was hired to do what private industry couldn't do.

"The city had been hiring big companies and paying them a lot of money to go in and clean the wetlands, and here is just one guy making a bigger impact than big environmental companies," Webb said.

"There's a saying, 'the solution to the pollution starts at your front door,' and if these folks really knew and saw the devastation that's happening, you know, you're not going to have this problem," Arkinstall said.

Although he gets discouraged, he said his reward at the end of the day is it's clean.