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Kurniawan TA, Mohyuddin A, Othman MHD, Goh HH, Zhang D, Anouzla A, Aziz F, Casila JC, Ali I, Pasaribu B. Beyond surface: Unveiling ecological and economic ramifications of microplastic pollution in the oceans. WATER ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH : A RESEARCH PUBLICATION OF THE WATER ENVIRONMENT FEDERATION 2024; 96:e11070. [PMID: 39005104 DOI: 10.1002/wer.11070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2024] [Revised: 05/28/2024] [Accepted: 06/11/2024] [Indexed: 07/16/2024]
Abstract
Every year, the global production of plastic waste reaches a staggering 400 million metric tons (Mt), precipitating adverse consequences for the environment, food safety, and biodiversity as it degrades into microplastics (MPs). The multifaceted nature of MP pollution, coupled with its intricate physiological impacts, underscores the pressing need for comprehensive policies and legislative frameworks. Such measures, alongside advancements in technology, hold promise in averting ecological catastrophe in the oceans. Mandated legislation represents a pivotal step towards restoring oceanic health and securing the well-being of the planet. This work offers an overview of the policy hurdles, legislative initiatives, and prospective strategies for addressing global pollution due to MP. Additionally, this work explores innovative approaches that yield fresh insights into combating plastic pollution across various sectors. Emphasizing the importance of a global plastics treaty, the article underscores its potential to galvanize collaborative efforts in mitigating MP pollution's deleterious effects on marine ecosystems. Successful implementation of such a treaty could revolutionize the plastics economy, steering it towards a circular, less polluting model operating within planetary boundaries. Failure to act decisively risks exacerbating the scourge of MP pollution and its attendant repercussions on both humanity and the environment. Central to this endeavor are the formulation, content, and execution of the treaty itself, which demand careful consideration. While recognizing that a global plastics treaty is not a panacea, it serves as a mechanism for enhancing plastics governance and elevating global ambitions towards achieving zero plastic pollution by 2040. Adopting a life cycle approach to plastic management allows for a nuanced understanding of possible trade-offs between environmental impact and economic growth, guiding the selection of optimal solutions with socio-economic implications in mind. By embracing a comprehensive strategy that integrates legislative measures and technological innovations, we can substantially reduce the influx of marine plastic litter at its sources, safeguarding the oceans for future generations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ayesha Mohyuddin
- Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore, Pakistan
| | - Mohd Hafiz Dzarfan Othman
- Advanced Membrane Technology Research Centre (AMTEC), Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM), Skudai, Johor Bahru, Malaysia
| | - Hui Hwang Goh
- School of Electrical Engineering, Guangxi University, Nanning, Guangxi, China
| | - Dongdong Zhang
- School of Electrical Engineering, Guangxi University, Nanning, Guangxi, China
| | - Abdelkader Anouzla
- Department of Process Engineering and Environment, Faculty of Science and Technology, University Hassan II of Casablanca, Mohammedia, Morocco
| | - Faissal Aziz
- Laboratory of Water, Biodiversity and Climate Changes, Semlalia Faculty of Sciences, B.P. 2390, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, Morocco
| | - Joan C Casila
- Land and Water Resources Engineering Division, Institute of Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering, College of Engineering and Agro-industrial Technology, University of the Philippines-Los Baños, Los Baños, Philippines
| | - Imran Ali
- Department of Chemistry, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, India
| | - Buntora Pasaribu
- Department of Marine Science, Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Science, Padjadjaran University, Jatinangor, Indonesia
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de Deus BCT, Costa TC, Altomari LN, Brovini EM, de Brito PSD, Cardoso SJ. Coastal plastic pollution: A global perspective. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 203:116478. [PMID: 38735173 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116478] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Revised: 04/21/2024] [Accepted: 05/06/2024] [Indexed: 05/14/2024]
Abstract
Coastal ecosystems have ecological importance worldwide and require control and prevention measures to mitigate human pollution. The objective of this study was to perform a systematic review to provide a comprehensive overview of the global issue of coastal plastic pollution. 689 articles were eligible for qualitative synthesis and 31 were considered for quantitative analysis. There was an exponential increase in articles addressing coastal plastic pollution over the past 50 years. Studies were mainly carried out on beaches, and plastic bottles were the most found item, followed by cigarette butts. Polyethylene was the predominant plastic polymer, and white microplastic fragments stood out. China published most articles on the topic and Brazil had the highest number of sites sampled. Meta-analysis had significant effect sizes based on the reported data. These findings carry significant implications for environmental policies, waste management practices, and targeted awareness campaigns aimed at mitigating plastic pollution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Beatriz Corrêa Thomé de Deus
- Postgraduate Program in Biodiversity and Nature Conservation, Institute of Biology, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Rua José Lourenço Kelmer, 36036-900, São Pedro, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Thaiane Cantarino Costa
- Postgraduate Program in Biodiversity and Nature Conservation, Institute of Biology, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Rua José Lourenço Kelmer, 36036-900, São Pedro, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Leslie Nascimento Altomari
- Postgraduate Program in Biodiversity and Nature Conservation, Institute of Biology, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Rua José Lourenço Kelmer, 36036-900, São Pedro, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Emília Marques Brovini
- Postgraduate Program in Environmental Engineering, Federal University of Ouro Preto, Campus Universitário, Morro do Cruzeiro, 35400-000 Ouro Preto, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - Paulo Sérgio Duque de Brito
- VALORIZA Research Centre, Polytechnic Institute of Portalegre, Campus Politécnico, 10, 7300-555 Portalegre, Portalegre, Portugal
| | - Simone Jaqueline Cardoso
- Postgraduate Program in Biodiversity and Nature Conservation, Institute of Biology, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Rua José Lourenço Kelmer, 36036-900, São Pedro, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Department of Zoology, Institute of Biology, Federal University of Juiz de Fora, Rua José Lourenço Kelmer, 36036-900, São Pedro, Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
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Markić A, Iveša N, Budiša A, Kovačić I, Burić P, Pustijanac E, Buršić M, Banai B, Legin DP, Palatinus A, Tutman P. Fragmented marine plastics as the prevalent litter type on a small island beach in the Adriatic. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 203:116467. [PMID: 38744047 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116467] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2024] [Revised: 04/25/2024] [Accepted: 05/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
The issue of plastic pollution has dramatically intensified in the recent years. Our study investigates extensive plastic contamination of a sandy beach on a small Adriatic island. The beach was sampled on three occasions, in 2013, 2020 and 2022, using 1 m2 quadrats placed along the lower and upper strandlines, resulting in average litter concentrations of 385 ± 106, 1095 ± 522 and 129 ± 37 item m-2, respectively. The lower size limit of collected litter was 1 mm, thus including large microplastics. Plastic fragments (49-74 %) and plastic pellets (15 %-37 %) were predominant litter categories. The proportion of fragments is significantly higher during the tourist season with a more intensive cleaning regime (April-October), as opposed to the off-season (November-March). Fisheries and aquaculture litter was identified as a relevant source of pollution. More research is needed in the future into the microplastics smaller than 1 mm.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Markić
- MoreSe, Non-profit organisation, Franje Iskre 4, 52210 Rovinj, Croatia; Blue Spark, Environmental Consultancy, Put za Marleru 20, 52204 Ližnjan, Croatia.
| | - Neven Iveša
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Zagrebačka 30, 52100 Pula, Croatia
| | - Andrea Budiša
- MoreSe, Non-profit organisation, Franje Iskre 4, 52210 Rovinj, Croatia; Department of Aquatic Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Droevendaalsesteeg 10, 6708 PB Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Ines Kovačić
- Faculty of Educational Sciences, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Zagrebačka 30, 52100 Pula, Croatia
| | - Petra Burić
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Zagrebačka 30, 52100 Pula, Croatia
| | - Emina Pustijanac
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Zagrebačka 30, 52100 Pula, Croatia
| | - Moira Buršić
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Zagrebačka 30, 52100 Pula, Croatia
| | - Benjamin Banai
- Banai Analitika, obrt za obradu podataka, vl. Benjamin Banai, Josipa Jurja Strossmayera 341, Osijek, Croatia
| | - Dora Pokas Legin
- Faculty of Natural Sciences, Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Zagrebačka 30, 52100 Pula, Croatia
| | - Andreja Palatinus
- Poslovno svetovanje, Andreja Palatinus s.p., Pot v dolino 3C, 1261 Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Pero Tutman
- Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, Šetalište Ivana Meštovića 63, 21000 Split, Croatia
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Sharma S, Bhardwaj A, Thakur M, Saini A. Understanding microplastic pollution of marine ecosystem: a review. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2024; 31:41402-41445. [PMID: 37442935 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-28314-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023]
Abstract
Microplastics are emerging as prominent pollutants across the globe. Oceans are becoming major sinks for these pollutants, and their presence is widespread in coastal regions, oceanic surface waters, water column, and sediments. Studies have revealed that microplastics cause serious threats to the marine ecosystem as well as human beings. In the past few years, many research efforts have focused on studying different aspects relating to microplastic pollution of the oceans. This review summarizes sources, migration routes, and ill effects of marine microplastic pollution along with various conventional as well as advanced methods for microplastics analysis and control. However, various knowledge gaps in detection and analysis require attention in order to understand the sources and transport of microplastics, which is critical to deploying mitigation strategies at appropriate locations. Advanced removal methods and an integrated approach are necessary, including government policies and stringent regulations to control the release of plastics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Swati Sharma
- Department of Biotechnology, Shoolini Institute of Life Sciences and Business Management, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India
| | - Aprajita Bhardwaj
- Department of Biotechnology, Shoolini Institute of Life Sciences and Business Management, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India
| | - Monika Thakur
- Department of Microbiology, Shoolini Institute of Life Sciences and Business Management, Solan, Himachal Pradesh, India
| | - Anita Saini
- Department of Microbiology, School of Basic and Applied Sciences, Maharaja Agrasen University, Baddi, Himachal Pradesh, India.
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Diansyah G, Rozirwan, Rahman MA, Nugroho RY, Syakti AD. Dynamics of microplastic abundance under tidal fluctuation in Musi estuary, Indonesia. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 203:116431. [PMID: 38692003 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2023] [Revised: 04/23/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/03/2024]
Abstract
Tidal dynamics contribute to fluctuations in microplastic abundance (MPs). This is the first study to characterize MPs under the influence of tidal fluctuations in the Musi River Estuary. MPs samples were collected during flood and ebb tides at 10 research stations representing the inner, middle and outer parts of the Musi River Estuary. MPs were extracted to identify the shape, color and size. MP abundances were 467.67 ± 127.84 particles/m3 during flood tide and 723.67 ± 112.05 particles/m3 during ebb tide. The concentration of MPs in the outer zone of the estuary (ocean) was detected to be higher than in the inner zone of the estuary (river). The MPs found were dominated by black color, film shape and size 101-250 μm. A greater abundance of MPs at ebb tide than at flood tide implies that the Musi Estuary's largest source of emissions is discharge from the river.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gusti Diansyah
- Department of Marine Science, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Sriwijaya, Ogan Ilir 30662, South Sumatra, Indonesia.
| | - Rozirwan
- Department of Marine Science, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Sriwijaya, Ogan Ilir 30662, South Sumatra, Indonesia
| | - M Akbar Rahman
- Environmental Management Study Program, Graduate Program, Universitas Sriwijaya, Palembang 30139, South Sumatra, Indonesia
| | - Redho Yoga Nugroho
- Environmental Management Study Program, Graduate Program, Universitas Sriwijaya, Palembang 30139, South Sumatra, Indonesia
| | - Agung Dhamar Syakti
- Marine Science and Fisheries Faculty, Raja Ali Haji Maritime University, Tanjung Pinang 29100, Riau Islands, Indonesia
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García-Regalado A, Herrera A, Almeda R. Microplastic and mesoplastic pollution in surface waters and beaches of the Canary Islands: A review. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 201:116230. [PMID: 38479326 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2023] [Revised: 02/27/2024] [Accepted: 03/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/07/2024]
Abstract
The Canary Archipelago is a group of volcanic islands located in the North Atlantic Ocean with high marine biodiversity. This archipelago intercepts the Canary Current, the easternmost branch of the Azores Current in the North Atlantic Subtropical Gyre, which brings large amounts of litter from remote sources via oceanic transportation. It is, therefore, particularly vulnerable to marine plastic pollution. Here, we present a review of the available studies on mesoplastics and microplastics in the Canary Islands over the last decade to evaluate the level and distribution of plastic pollution in this archipelago. Specifically, we focused on data from beaches and surface waters to assess the pollution level among the different islands as well as between windward and leeward zones, and the main characteristics (size, type, colour, and polymer) of the plastics found in the Canary Islands. The concentrations of meso- and MPs on beaches ranged from 1.5 to 2972 items/m2 with a mean of 381 ± 721 items/m2. The concentration of MPs (>200 μm) in surface waters was highly variable with mean values of 998 × 103 ± 3364 × 103 items/km2 and 10 ± 31 items/m3. Plastic pollution in windward beaches was one order of magnitude significantly higher than in leeward beaches. The accumulation of MPs in surface waters was higher in the leeward zones of the high-elevation islands, corresponding to the Special Areas of Conservation (ZECs) and where the presence of marine litter windrows (MLW) has been reported. Microplastic fragments of polyethylene of the colour category "white/clear/uncoloured" were the most common type of plastic reported in both beaches and surface waters. More studies on the occurrence of MLW in ZECS and plastic pollution in the water column and sediments, including small-size fractions (<200 μm), are needed to better assess the level of plastic pollution and its fate in the Canary Islands. Overall, this review confirms that the Canary Archipelago is a hotspot of oceanic plastic pollution, with concentrations of MPs in surface waters in the highest range reported for oceanic islands and one of the highest recorded mean concentrations of beached meso- and microplastics in the world.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alicia Herrera
- EOMAR, ECOAQUA, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
| | - Rodrigo Almeda
- EOMAR, ECOAQUA, Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
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Azaaouaj S, Nachite D, Anfuso G, Er-Ramy N. Abundance and distribution of microplastics on sandy beaches of the eastern Moroccan Mediterranean coast. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2024; 200:116144. [PMID: 38340376 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2023] [Revised: 02/05/2024] [Accepted: 02/06/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024]
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) were investigated at 19 sandy beaches along the eastern Mediterranean Moroccan coast. Sediment samples (5 mm-63 μm) were analyzed to identify MPs abundance, size, shape, color and nature. MPs concentration ranged from 40 ± 7.4 to 230 ± 48.6 MPs kg-1; fibrous MPs were the most abundant (74.72 %), followed by fragments (20.26 %), films (3.27 %), pellets (1.42 %) and foams (0.33 %). Large MPs (1-5 mm) accounted for 58 %, while small (< 1 mm) for 42 %. The 1-2 mm fraction of sediments presented the greatest amounts (30.67 %) of MPs. Transparent (50 %) and blue (17 %) were most common colors and most of particles were angular and irregularly shaped. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis showed that PE (Polyethylene), PS (Polystyrene) and PP (Polypropylene) and PVC (Polyvinyl chloride) were the most common polymers. These findings revealed a moderate level of microplastic pollution along the beaches of the eastern Moroccan Mediterranean coast.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Azaaouaj
- Laboratory of Applied and Marine Geosciences, Geotechnics and Geohazards (LR3G), Faculty of Sciences, University of Abdelmalek Essaâdi, 93000 Tetouan, Morocco
| | - D Nachite
- Laboratory of Applied and Marine Geosciences, Geotechnics and Geohazards (LR3G), Faculty of Sciences, University of Abdelmalek Essaâdi, 93000 Tetouan, Morocco.
| | - G Anfuso
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Marine and Environmental Sciences, University of Cádiz, 11510 Puerto Real, Spain.
| | - N Er-Ramy
- Laboratory of Applied and Marine Geosciences, Geotechnics and Geohazards (LR3G), Faculty of Sciences, University of Abdelmalek Essaâdi, 93000 Tetouan, Morocco
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Lee SE, Yoon HK, Kim DY, Jeong TS, Park YS. An Emerging Role of Micro- and Nanoplastics in Vascular Diseases. Life (Basel) 2024; 14:255. [PMID: 38398764 PMCID: PMC10890539 DOI: 10.3390/life14020255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2023] [Revised: 02/06/2024] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Vascular diseases are the leading causes of death worldwide, and they are attributable to multiple pathologies, such as atherosclerosis, diabetes, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Exposure to various environmental contaminants is associated with the development of various diseases, including vascular diseases. Among environmental contaminants, micro- and nanoplastics have gained attention as global environmental risk factors that threaten human health. Recently, extensive research has been conducted on the effects of micro- and nanoplastics on various human diseases, including vascular diseases. In this review, we highlight the effects of micro- and nanoplastics on vascular diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seung Eun Lee
- Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, Republic of Korea
| | - Hyun Kyung Yoon
- Department of Biomedical Science, Graduate School, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, Republic of Korea; (H.K.Y.); (D.Y.K.); (T.S.J.)
| | - Do Yun Kim
- Department of Biomedical Science, Graduate School, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, Republic of Korea; (H.K.Y.); (D.Y.K.); (T.S.J.)
| | - Taek Seung Jeong
- Department of Biomedical Science, Graduate School, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, Republic of Korea; (H.K.Y.); (D.Y.K.); (T.S.J.)
| | - Yong Seek Park
- Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul 02447, Republic of Korea
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Amenábar M, Aguilera MA, Gallardo C, Moore C, De Vine R, Lattin G, Gamba A, Luna-Acosta A, Thiel M. Spatial distribution of microplastics in a coastal upwelling region: Offshore dispersal from urban sources in the Humboldt Current System. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2024; 343:123157. [PMID: 38142808 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.123157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2023] [Revised: 11/15/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/26/2023]
Abstract
In coastal waters, higher concentrations of microplastics (MPs) are generally related to densely populated and industrialized areas, but intense upwelling and offshore transport in the Eastern Boundary Upwelling Systems (EBUS) may influence this pattern. The Humboldt Current System (HCS) along the coast of northern-central Chile represents a perfect model to test whether the abundance of MP at the sea surface decreases with distance from land-based sources, e.g., river mouths, harbors, and submarine wastewater outfalls. The sea surface was sampled with a manta trawl to examine the abundance, composition, and distribution of floating MPs, and Generalized Additive Mixed Models (GAMMs) were performed to examine the relationship between MP abundance (particles km-2) and the distance to putative sources. MPs were found in all 57 net tows, with an average of ⁓120,000 MP km-2 and maximum values of ⁓1,500,000 MP km-2. The composition of MPs was dominated by fragments (>50% of the total count) and over 80% of all MPs were ≥1 mm. The combined effect of the various sources, spatially concentrated in urban areas, makes it difficult to distinguish their relative contributions, but the MP composition suggested that rivers are more important sources, followed by submarine wastewater outfalls and then harbors. A significant and steep negative relationship with the "distance to source" explained 15.2% of the variance of "MP abundance", suggesting rapid offshore displacement within the HCS. This is the first study to report this pattern along the edges of the South Pacific Subtropical Gyre (SPSG), revealing that continuous offshore transport of microplastic from land-based sources is occurring over large scales and contributing to the accumulation of microplastics in the center of the SPSG. However, the findings additionally suggested that processes at meso- and submeso-spatial scales (driven by geographic and seasonal variables) are disrupting the general pattern.
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Affiliation(s)
- María Amenábar
- Facultad Ciencias del Mar, Universidad Católica del Norte, Larrondo 1281, Coquimbo, 1781421, Chile
| | - Moisés A Aguilera
- Departamento de Ciencias, Facultad de Artes Liberales, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Diagonal Las Torres, 2640, Peñalolén, Santiago, Chile
| | - Camila Gallardo
- Facultad Ciencias del Mar, Universidad Católica del Norte, Larrondo 1281, Coquimbo, 1781421, Chile; Center of Ecology and Sustainable Management of Oceanic Islands (ESMOI), Coquimbo, Chile
| | - Charles Moore
- Moore Institute for Plastic Pollution Research, Long Beach, CA, USA; Algalita Marine Research and Education, Long Beach, CA, USA
| | - Raquelle De Vine
- Moore Institute for Plastic Pollution Research, Long Beach, CA, USA; Algalita Marine Research and Education, Long Beach, CA, USA
| | - Gwen Lattin
- Moore Institute for Plastic Pollution Research, Long Beach, CA, USA; Algalita Marine Research and Education, Long Beach, CA, USA
| | - Angela Gamba
- Departamento de Ecología y Territorio, Facultad de Estudios Ambientales y Rurales, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Andrea Luna-Acosta
- Departamento de Ecología y Territorio, Facultad de Estudios Ambientales y Rurales, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia
| | - Martin Thiel
- Facultad Ciencias del Mar, Universidad Católica del Norte, Larrondo 1281, Coquimbo, 1781421, Chile; Center of Ecology and Sustainable Management of Oceanic Islands (ESMOI), Coquimbo, Chile; MarineGEO Program, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater, MD, USA.
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Malloggi C, Nalbone L, Bartalena S, Guidi M, Corradini C, Foti A, Gucciardi PG, Giarratana F, Susini F, Armani A. The Occurrence of Microplastics in Donax trunculus (Mollusca: Bivalvia) Collected along the Tuscany Coast (Mediterranean Sea). Animals (Basel) 2024; 14:618. [PMID: 38396586 PMCID: PMC10886031 DOI: 10.3390/ani14040618] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2023] [Revised: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) (0.1 µm-5 mm particles) have been documented in oceans and seas. Bivalve molluscs (BMs) can accumulate MPs and transfer to humans through the food chain. BMs (especially mussels) are used to assess MPs' contamination, but the genus Donax has not been thoroughly investigated. The aim of this study was to detect and characterize MPs in D. trunculus specimens collected along the Tuscan coast (Italy), and to assess the potential risk for consumers. The samples (~10 g of tissue and intervalval liquid from 35 specimens) were digested using a solution of 10% KOH, subjected to NaCl density separation, and filtered through 5 μm pore-size filters. All items were morphologically classified and measured, and their mean abundance (MA) was calculated. Furthermore, 20% of them were analyzed by Raman spectroscopy and, based on the obtained results, the MA was recalculated (corrected MA) and the annual human exposure was estimated. In the 39 samples analyzed, 85 items fibers (n = 45; 52.94%) and fragments (n = 40; 47.06%) were found. The MA was 0.23 ± 0.17 items/grww. Additionally, 83.33% of the items were confirmed as MPs (polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate). Based on the correct MA (0.18 MPs/grww), D. trunculus consumers could be exposed to 19.2 MPs/per capita/year. The health risk level of MPs was classified as level III (moderate).
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Malloggi
- FishLab, Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa, Viale delle Piagge 2, 56124 Pisa, Italy; (C.M.); (M.G.)
| | - Luca Nalbone
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Messina, Polo Universitario Dell’Annunziata, 98168 Messina, Italy; (L.N.); (F.G.)
| | - Silvia Bartalena
- Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Latium and Tuscany M. Aleandri, UOT Toscana Nord, SS Dell’ Abetone e del Brennero 4, 56123 Pisa, Italy; (S.B.); (F.S.)
| | - Margherita Guidi
- FishLab, Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa, Viale delle Piagge 2, 56124 Pisa, Italy; (C.M.); (M.G.)
| | - Carlo Corradini
- Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Latium and Tuscany M. Aleandri, Via Appia Nuova, 1411, 00178 Roma, Italy;
| | - Antonino Foti
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), Istituto per i Processi Chimico-Fisici (IPCF), Viale F. Stagno D’Alcontres 27, 98158 Messina, Italy; (A.F.); (P.G.G.)
| | - Pietro G. Gucciardi
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche (CNR), Istituto per i Processi Chimico-Fisici (IPCF), Viale F. Stagno D’Alcontres 27, 98158 Messina, Italy; (A.F.); (P.G.G.)
| | - Filippo Giarratana
- Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Messina, Polo Universitario Dell’Annunziata, 98168 Messina, Italy; (L.N.); (F.G.)
| | - Francesca Susini
- Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Latium and Tuscany M. Aleandri, UOT Toscana Nord, SS Dell’ Abetone e del Brennero 4, 56123 Pisa, Italy; (S.B.); (F.S.)
| | - Andrea Armani
- FishLab, Department of Veterinary Sciences, University of Pisa, Viale delle Piagge 2, 56124 Pisa, Italy; (C.M.); (M.G.)
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11
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Izar GM, Tan TY, Laurino IRA, Nobre CR, Vivas MPM, Gusso-Choueri PK, Felix CSA, Moreno BB, Abessa DMS, de Andrade JB, Martinez ST, da Rocha GO, Albergaria-Barbosa ACR. Plastic pellets make Excirolana armata more aggressive: Intraspecific interactions and isopod mortality differences between populations. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 911:168611. [PMID: 37984664 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.168611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Revised: 10/18/2023] [Accepted: 11/14/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
Plastic pellets represent a significant component of microplastic (< 5 mm) pollution. Impacts caused by plastic pellets involve physical harm and toxicity related to ingestion and non-ingestion (such as the release of chemicals in leachates). The latter is the main route of exposure for invertebrate macrobenthic populations. This study aimed to compare the toxicity of plastic pellets in distinct marine macrobenthic populations, considering the influence of sediment characteristics (organic matter and grain size) and quality (contamination by hydrophobic chemicals) on ecotoxicological effects, as well as the influence of color on the toxicity of beach-stranded plastic pellets. We performed three experiments on plastic pellet exposure using Excirolana armata from beaches with high and low pellet density. When exposed to pellets, populations that inhabit beaches without pellets demonstrate higher mortality than those inhabiting beaches with high pellet densities. The mortality of E. armata to pellets was higher when the exposure occurred in sediment with high organic matter (OM), suggesting that chemicals were transferred from pellets to OM. Yellowish beach-stranded pellets induced higher mortality of E. armata than the white tones did. We also observed lethargic (near-dead) and dead individuals being preyed upon by healthy individuals, a cannibalistic behavior that raises an ecological concern regarding the negative effects of this exposure on intraspecific interactions in marine macrobenthic populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- G M Izar
- Interdisciplinary Center of Energy and Environment (CIEnAm), Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil; Marine Geochemistry Laboratory, Institute of Geoscience, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
| | - T Y Tan
- Aquaculture and Fisheries Group, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands; Wageningen Marine Research, Wageningen University & Research, Yerseke, the Netherlands
| | - I R A Laurino
- Laboratory of Management, Ecology and Marine Conservation/Oceanographic Institute (IO-USP) - Praça Oceanográfico, 191 - Butantã, São Paulo, SP 05508-120, Brazil
| | - C R Nobre
- Institute of Marine Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo (IMar/UNIFESP), Rua Dr. Carvalho de Mendonça, 144, 11070-102, Santos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - M P M Vivas
- Interdisciplinary Center of Energy and Environment (CIEnAm), Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - P K Gusso-Choueri
- Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Praça Infante Dom Henrique, s/n, 11330-900 São Vicente, São Paulo, Brazil; Department of Ecotoxicology, Santa Cecília University, Rua Oswaldo Cruz, 277, 1045-0907 Santos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - C S A Felix
- Interdisciplinary Center of Energy and Environment (CIEnAm), Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil; Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - B B Moreno
- Department of Ecotoxicology, Santa Cecília University, Rua Oswaldo Cruz, 277, 1045-0907 Santos, São Paulo, Brazil; Institute of Marine Sciences, Federal University of São Paulo (IMar/UNIFESP), Rua Dr. Carvalho de Mendonça, 144, 11070-102, Santos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - D M S Abessa
- Biosciences Institute, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Praça Infante Dom Henrique, s/n, 11330-900 São Vicente, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - J B de Andrade
- Interdisciplinary Center of Energy and Environment (CIEnAm), Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil; SENAI-CIMATEC, Av. Orlando Gomes, 1845 - Piatã, 41650-010 Salvador, BA, Brazil; National Institute of Science and Technology in Energy and Environment (INCT), Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - S T Martinez
- SENAI-CIMATEC, Av. Orlando Gomes, 1845 - Piatã, 41650-010 Salvador, BA, Brazil
| | - G O da Rocha
- Interdisciplinary Center of Energy and Environment (CIEnAm), Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil; Institute of Chemistry, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil; National Institute of Science and Technology in Energy and Environment (INCT), Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - A C R Albergaria-Barbosa
- Marine Geochemistry Laboratory, Institute of Geoscience, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
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12
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Metcalf R, Messer LF, White HL, Ormsby MJ, Matallana-Surget S, Quilliam RS. Evidence of interspecific plasmid uptake by pathogenic strains of Klebsiella isolated from microplastic pollution on public beaches. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2024; 461:132567. [PMID: 37741206 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.132567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2023] [Revised: 08/22/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/25/2023]
Abstract
Microplastic beads are becoming a common feature on beaches, and there is increasing evidence that such microplastics can become colonised by potential human pathogens. However, whether the concentrations and pathogenicity of these pathogens pose a public health risk are still unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine realistic environmental concentrations of potential pathogens colonising microplastic beads, and quantify the expression of virulence and antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs). Microplastic beads were collected from beaches and a culture-dependent approach was used to determine the concentrations of seven target bacteria (Campylobacter spp.; E. coli; intestinal enterococci; Klebsiella spp.; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Salmonella spp.; Vibrio spp.). All seven target bacteria were detected without the need for a pre-enrichment step; urban sites had higher bacterial concentrations, whilst polymer type had no influence on bacterial concentrations. Klebsiella was the most abundant target bacteria and possessed virulence and ARGs, some of which were present on plasmids from other species, and showed pathogenicity in a Galleria melonella infection model. Our findings demonstrate how pathogen colonised microplastic beads can pose a heightened public health risk at the beach, and highlights the urgency for improved monitoring and enforcement of regulations on the release of microplastics into the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca Metcalf
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK.
| | - Lauren F Messer
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
| | - Hannah L White
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
| | - Michael J Ormsby
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
| | - Sabine Matallana-Surget
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
| | - Richard S Quilliam
- Biological and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA, UK
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13
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Kurniawan TA, Haider A, Mohyuddin A, Fatima R, Salman M, Shaheen A, Ahmad HM, Al-Hazmi HE, Othman MHD, Aziz F, Anouzla A, Ali I. Tackling microplastics pollution in global environment through integration of applied technology, policy instruments, and legislation. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2023; 346:118971. [PMID: 37729832 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2023] [Revised: 08/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/09/2023] [Indexed: 09/22/2023]
Abstract
Microplastic pollution is a serious environmental problem that affects both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Small particles with size of less than 5 mm, known as microplastics (MPs), persist in the environment and pose serious threats to various species from micro-organisms to humans. However, terrestrial environment has received less attention than the aquatic environment, despite being a major source of MPs that eventually reaches water body. To reflect its novelty, this work aims at providing a comprehensive overview of the current state of MPs pollution in the global environment and various solutions to address MP pollution by integrating applied technology, policy instruments, and legislation. This review critically evaluates and compares the existing technologies for MPs detection, removal, and degradation, and a variety of policy instruments and legislation that can support the prevention and management of MPs pollution scientifically. Furthermore, this review identifies the gaps and challenges in addressing the complex and diverse nature of MPs and calls for joint actions and collaboration from stakeholders to contain MPs. As water pollution by MPs is complex, managing it effectively requires their responses through the utilization of technology, policy instruments, and legislation. It is evident from a literature survey of 228 published articles (1961-2023) that existing water technologies are promising to remove MPs pollution. Membrane bioreactors and ultrafiltration achieved 90% of MPs removal, while magnetic separation was effective at extracting 88% of target MPs from wastewater. In biological process, one kg of wax worms could consume about 80 g of plastic/day. This means that 100 kg of wax worms can eat about 8 kg of plastic daily, or about 2.9 tons of plastic annually. Overall, the integration of technology, policy instrument, and legislation is crucial to deal with the MPs issues.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ahtisham Haider
- Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore 54770, Pakistan
| | - Ayesha Mohyuddin
- Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore 54770, Pakistan.
| | - Rida Fatima
- Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore 54770, Pakistan
| | - Muhammad Salman
- Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore 54770, Pakistan
| | - Anila Shaheen
- Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore 54770, Pakistan
| | - Hafiz Muhammad Ahmad
- Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore 54770, Pakistan; Department of Chemistry, School of Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, PR China
| | - Hussein E Al-Hazmi
- Department of Sanitary Engineering, Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Gdańsk University of Technology, Gdańsk, Poland
| | - Mohd Hafiz Dzarfan Othman
- Advanced Membrane Technology Research Centre (AMTEC), Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 Skudai, Johor Bahru, Malaysia
| | - Faissal Aziz
- Laboratory of Water, Biodiversity & Climate Changes, Faculty of Science Semlalia, Cadi Ayyad University, BP 2390, 40000, Marrakech, Morocco
| | - Abdelkader Anouzla
- Department of Process Engineering and Environment, Faculty of Science and Technology, University Hassan II of Casablanca, Mohammedia, Morocco
| | - Imran Ali
- Department of Chemistry, Jamia Millia Islamia (Central University), Jamia Nagar, New Delhi 110025, India
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14
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Jimenez-Guri E, Murano C, Paganos P, Arnone MI. PVC pellet leachates affect adult immune system and embryonic development but not reproductive capacity in the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2023; 196:115604. [PMID: 37820449 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2023.115604] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Revised: 09/15/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/13/2023]
Abstract
Microplastic pollution is a major concern of our age, eliciting a range of effects on organisms including during embryonic development. Plastic preproduction pellets stunt the development of sea urchins through the leaching of teratogenic compounds. However, the effect of these leachates on adult sea urchins and their fertility is unknown. Here we investigate the effect of PVC leachates on the capacity to produce normal embryos, and demonstrate that adults kept in contaminated water still produce viable offspring. However, we observe a cumulative negative effect by continued exposure to highly polluted water: adult animals had lower counts and disturbed morphological profiles of immune cells, were under increased oxidative stress, and produced embryos less tolerant of contaminated environments. Our findings suggest that even in highly polluted areas, sea urchins are fertile, but that sublethal effects seen in the adults may lead to transgenerational effects that reduce developmental robustness of the embryos.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Jimenez-Guri
- Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy.
| | - Carola Murano
- Department of Integrative Marine Ecology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
| | - Periklis Paganos
- Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
| | - Maria Ina Arnone
- Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
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15
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Goßmann I, Mattsson K, Hassellöv M, Crazzolara C, Held A, Robinson TB, Wurl O, Scholz-Böttcher BM. Unraveling the Marine Microplastic Cycle: The First Simultaneous Data Set for Air, Sea Surface Microlayer, and Underlying Water. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2023; 57:16541-16551. [PMID: 37853526 PMCID: PMC10620994 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c05002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2023] [Revised: 09/26/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023]
Abstract
Microplastics (MP) including tire wear particles (TWP) are ubiquitous. However, their mass loads, transport, and vertical behavior in water bodies and overlying air are never studied simultaneously before. Particularly, the sea surface microlayer (SML), a ubiquitous, predominantly organic, and gelatinous film (<1 mm), is interesting since it may favor MP enrichment. In this study, a remote-controlled research catamaran simultaneously sampled air, SML, and underlying water (ULW) in Swedish fjords of variable anthropogenic impacts (urban, industrial, and rural) to fill these knowledge gaps in the marine-atmospheric MP cycle. Polymer clusters and TWP were identified and quantified with pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Air samples contained clusters of polyethylene terephthalate, polycarbonate, and polystyrene (max 50 ng MP m-3). In water samples (max. 10.8 μg MP L-1), mainly TWP and clusters of poly(methyl methacrylate) and polyethylene terephthalate occurred. Here, TWP prevailed in the SML, while the poly(methyl methacrylate) cluster dominated the ULW. However, no general MP enrichment was observed in the SML. Elevated anthropogenic influences in urban and industrial compared to the rural fjord areas were reflected by enhanced MP levels in these areas. Vertical MP movement behavior and distribution were not only linked to polymer characteristics but also to polymer sources and environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Goßmann
- Institute
for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment (ICBM), Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg, P.O. Box 2503, Oldenburg 26111, Germany
- Center
for Marine Sensors, Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine
Environment (ICBM), Carl von Ossietzky University
of Oldenburg, Wilhelmshaven 26382, Germany
| | - Karin Mattsson
- Department
of Marine Sciences, University
of Gothenburg, Kristineberg 566, Fiskebäckskil 45178, Sweden
| | - Martin Hassellöv
- Department
of Marine Sciences, University
of Gothenburg, Kristineberg 566, Fiskebäckskil 45178, Sweden
| | - Claudio Crazzolara
- Chair
of Environmental Chemistry and Air Research, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin 10623, Germany
| | - Andreas Held
- Chair
of Environmental Chemistry and Air Research, Technische Universität Berlin, Berlin 10623, Germany
| | - Tiera-Brandy Robinson
- GEOMAR
Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research Kiel, Wischhofstraße 1-3, Kiel 24148, Germany
| | - Oliver Wurl
- Center
for Marine Sensors, Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine
Environment (ICBM), Carl von Ossietzky University
of Oldenburg, Wilhelmshaven 26382, Germany
| | - Barbara M. Scholz-Böttcher
- Institute
for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment (ICBM), Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg, P.O. Box 2503, Oldenburg 26111, Germany
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16
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Mejjad N, Laissaoui A, Fekri A, Hammoumi OE. Marine plastic pollution in Morocco: state of the knowledge on origin, occurrence, fate, and management. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2023; 30:107371-107389. [PMID: 37084049 PMCID: PMC10119835 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-26973-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2022] [Accepted: 04/08/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Plastic pollution presents a major challenge facing stakeholders and decision-making worldwide. Plastics in the ocean damage biodiversity and marine ecosystem services that the blue economy relies upon. The present work analyses and reviews the literature on plastic pollution and the background knowledge about marine plastic pollution in Morocco. The economy of Morocco depends mainly on marine activities, including fisheries, tourism, and maritime trade. These sectors were identified as the main in-situ sources of plastics entering Moroccan coastal waters. The analysis results showed that the increasing abundance of plastics in such marine systems causes substantial economic loss to blue economy activities. In contrast, the lack of data on the plastic waste quantity entering Moroccan water is a limiting factor for assessing plastic pollution. This highlights the need for a risk assessment and more field investigations to value the weight impacts of marine activities generators of plastics on biodiversity and the economy. In addition, implementing laws and rules forbidding the disposal of plastic waste (PW) in public spaces, mainly beaches, and streets, is urgently needed. Raising awareness of plastic waste management and prioritizing improved waste collection, sorting, and management would boost Morocco's establishment and adoption of circular economy strategies. It is worth noting that while implementing the management projects and regulatory frameworks of plastic waste, considering their source and usage purpose is mandatory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nezha Mejjad
- Centre National de l'Energie, des Sciences et des Techniques Nucléaires (CNESTEN), Rabat, Morocco.
| | - Abdelmourhit Laissaoui
- Centre National de l'Energie, des Sciences et des Techniques Nucléaires (CNESTEN), Rabat, Morocco
| | - Ahmed Fekri
- LGAGE, Department of Geology, Faculty of Sciences Ben M'sik, University Hassan II-Casablanca, Casablanca, Morocco
| | - Ouafa El Hammoumi
- LGAGE, Department of Geology, Faculty of Sciences Ben M'sik, University Hassan II-Casablanca, Casablanca, Morocco
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17
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Lin YD, Huang PH, Chen YW, Hsieh CW, Tain YL, Lee BH, Hou CY, Shih MK. Sources, Degradation, Ingestion and Effects of Microplastics on Humans: A Review. TOXICS 2023; 11:747. [PMID: 37755757 PMCID: PMC10534390 DOI: 10.3390/toxics11090747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2023] [Revised: 08/24/2023] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023]
Abstract
Celluloid, the predecessor to plastic, was synthesized in 1869, and due to technological advancements, plastic products appear to be ubiquitous in daily life. The massive production, rampant usage, and inadequate disposal of plastic products have led to severe environmental pollution. Consequently, reducing the employment of plastic has emerged as a pressing concern for governments globally. This review explores microplastics, including their origins, absorption, and harmful effects on the environment and humans. Several methods exist for breaking down plastics, including thermal, mechanical, light, catalytic, and biological processes. Despite these methods, microplastics (MPs, between 1 and 5 mm in size) continue to be produced during degradation. Acknowledging the significant threat that MPs pose to the environment and human health is imperative. This form of pollution is pervasive in the air and food and infiltrates our bodies through ingestion, inhalation, or skin contact. It is essential to assess the potential hazards that MPs can introduce. There is evidence suggesting that MPs may have negative impacts on different areas of human health. These include the respiratory, gastrointestinal, immune, nervous, and reproductive systems, the liver and organs, the skin, and even the placenta and placental barrier. It is encouraging to see that most of the countries have taken steps to regulate plastic particles. These measures aim to reduce plastic usage, which is essential today. At the same time, this review summarizes the degradation mechanism of plastics, their impact on human health, and plastic reduction policies worldwide. It provides valuable information for future research on MPs and regulatory development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan-Duan Lin
- Department of Seafood Science, College of Hydrosphere, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 81157, Taiwan; (Y.-D.L.); (C.-Y.H.)
| | - Ping-Hsiu Huang
- School of Food, Jiangsu Food and Pharmaceutical Science College, No.4, Meicheng Road, Higher Education Park, Huai’an 223003, China;
| | - Yu-Wei Chen
- Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 40227, Taiwan; (Y.-W.C.); (C.-W.H.)
- Department of Pediatrics, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Kaohsiung 83301, Taiwan;
| | - Chang-Wei Hsieh
- Department of Food Science and Biotechnology, National Chung Hsing University, Taichung 40227, Taiwan; (Y.-W.C.); (C.-W.H.)
- Department of Medical Research, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung 40447, Taiwan
| | - You-Lin Tain
- Department of Pediatrics, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Kaohsiung 83301, Taiwan;
- Institute for Translational Research in Biomedicine, Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Kaohsiung 83301, Taiwan
- College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan 33305, Taiwan
| | - Bao-Hong Lee
- Department of Horticulture, National Chiayi University, Chiayi 60004, Taiwan;
| | - Chih-Yao Hou
- Department of Seafood Science, College of Hydrosphere, National Kaohsiung University of Science and Technology, Kaohsiung 81157, Taiwan; (Y.-D.L.); (C.-Y.H.)
| | - Ming-Kuei Shih
- Graduate Institute of Food Culture and Innovation, National Kaohsiung University of Hospitality and Tourism, Kaohsiung 812301, Taiwan
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18
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Ferdous SR, Amin A, Hasan J, Alam MS, Shahjahan M. Prevalence of microplastics in commonly consumed fish species of the river Old Brahmaputra, Bangladesh. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2023; 30:85639-85654. [PMID: 37392300 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-28514-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2023] [Accepted: 06/26/2023] [Indexed: 07/03/2023]
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) are pervasive in aquatic environments, but inland waterbodies (rivers and floodplains) have received much less attention. The present study assesses the incidence of MPs in the gastrointestinal tracts of five commercially important edible fish species-two column feeders (n = 30) and three benthivores (n = 45) from upstream, midstream, and downstream of the Old Brahmaputra river in north-central Bangladesh. MPs were detected in 58.93% of fish, with the highest level in freshwater eel, Mastacembelus armatus (10.31 ± 0.75/fish). Fibers (49.03%) and pellets (28.02%) were the most frequent MPs. Nearly 72% MPs were smaller than 1 mm, and 50.97% were black. FTIR analysis showed 59% polyethelene (PE), followed by polyamide (40%) and unidentified (1%). MP ingestion was linked to fish size and weight, and a high incidence was recorded in the downstream river. Two omnivorous benthic fish ingest more MPs than others. The results corroborate the presence of MPs in the inland river and fish fauna and augment our understanding of heterogeneous MP uptake by fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Syed Rubaiyat Ferdous
- Department of Fish Biology and Genetics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, 2202, Bangladesh
| | - Al Amin
- Department of Fish Biology and Genetics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, 2202, Bangladesh
| | - Jabed Hasan
- Laboratory of Fish Ecophysiology, Department of Fisheries Management, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, 2202, Bangladesh
| | - Md Samsul Alam
- Department of Fish Biology and Genetics, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, 2202, Bangladesh
| | - Md Shahjahan
- Laboratory of Fish Ecophysiology, Department of Fisheries Management, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, 2202, Bangladesh.
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19
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Cubas ALV, Moecke EHS, Provin AP, Dutra ARA, Machado MM, Gouveia IC. The Impacts of Plastic Waste from Personal Protective Equipment Used during the COVID-19 Pandemic. Polymers (Basel) 2023; 15:3151. [PMID: 37571045 PMCID: PMC10421242 DOI: 10.3390/polym15153151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2023] [Revised: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 07/14/2023] [Indexed: 08/13/2023] Open
Abstract
The period from 2019 to 2022 has been defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, resulting in an unprecedented demand for and use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). However, the disposal of PPE without considering its environmental impact and proper waste management practices has become a growing concern. The increased demand for PPE during the pandemic and associated waste management practices have been analyzed. Additionally, the discussion around treating these residues and exploring more environmentally friendly alternatives, such as biodegradable or reusable PPE, is crucial. The extensive use of predominantly non-degradable plastics in PPE has led to their accumulation in landfills, with potential consequences for marine environments through the formation of microplastics. Therefore, this article seeks to establish a connection between these issues and the Sustainable Development Goals, emphasizing the importance of efficient management aligned with sustainable development objectives to address these emerging challenges and ensure a more sustainable future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anelise Leal Vieira Cubas
- Environmental Science Master’s Program, University of Southern Santa Catarina (Unisul), Avenida Pedra Branca, 25, Palhoça 88137-270, Brazil; (E.H.S.M.); (A.P.P.); (A.R.A.D.)
| | - Elisa Helena Siegel Moecke
- Environmental Science Master’s Program, University of Southern Santa Catarina (Unisul), Avenida Pedra Branca, 25, Palhoça 88137-270, Brazil; (E.H.S.M.); (A.P.P.); (A.R.A.D.)
| | - Ana Paula Provin
- Environmental Science Master’s Program, University of Southern Santa Catarina (Unisul), Avenida Pedra Branca, 25, Palhoça 88137-270, Brazil; (E.H.S.M.); (A.P.P.); (A.R.A.D.)
| | - Ana Regina Aguiar Dutra
- Environmental Science Master’s Program, University of Southern Santa Catarina (Unisul), Avenida Pedra Branca, 25, Palhoça 88137-270, Brazil; (E.H.S.M.); (A.P.P.); (A.R.A.D.)
| | - Marina Medeiros Machado
- Environmental Engineering, Federal University of Ouro Preto (UFOP), Ouro Preto 35402-163, Brazil;
| | - Isabel C. Gouveia
- FibEnTech R&D—Fiber Materials and Environmental Technologies, University of Beira Interior, Rua Marquês d’Ávila e Bolama, 6201-001 Covilhã, Portugal;
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Alqahtani S, Alqahtani S, Saquib Q, Mohiddin F. Toxicological impact of microplastics and nanoplastics on humans: understanding the mechanistic aspect of the interaction. FRONTIERS IN TOXICOLOGY 2023; 5:1193386. [PMID: 37521752 PMCID: PMC10375051 DOI: 10.3389/ftox.2023.1193386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2023] [Accepted: 06/29/2023] [Indexed: 08/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Plastic is a pervasive material that has become an indispensable part of our daily lives and is used in various commercial products. However, plastic waste has significantly impacted the environment, accumulating in water and land ecosystems and harming all forms of life. When plastic degrades, it breaks down into smaller particles called microplastics (MPs), which can further breakdown into nanoplastics (NPs). Due to their small size and potential toxicity to humans, NPs are of particular concern. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the production of plastic had reached unprecedented levels, including essential medical kits, food bags, and personal protective equipment (PPE), which generate MPs and NPs when burned. MPs and NPs have been detected in various locations, such as air, food, and soil, but our understanding of their potential adverse health effects is limited. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the sources, interactions, ecotoxicity, routes of exposure, toxicity mechanisms, detection methods, and future directions for the safety evaluation of MPs and NPs. This would improve our understanding of the impact of MPs and NPs on our health and environment and identify ways to address this global crisis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saeed Alqahtani
- Advanced Diagnostics and Therapeutics Institute, Health Sector, King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST), Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
- Comparative Pathobiology Department, Purdue University Center for Cancer Research, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States
| | - Shaherah Alqahtani
- School of Health Sciences, College of Health and Human Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, United States
| | - Quaiser Saquib
- Chair for DNA Research, Zoology Department, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
| | - Fayaz Mohiddin
- Mountain Research Center for Field Crops, Khudwani, Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology, Srinagar, India
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Raju MP, Veerasingam S, Suneel V, Saha M, Rathore C, Naik A, Suneetha P, Ramakrishna SSVS. Seasonal variation and spatial distribution of microplastic pellets and their associated contaminants along the central east coast of India. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2023; 30:68489-68503. [PMID: 37126173 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-27100-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 04/14/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Microplastic pellets (MPPs) are one of the significant sources of plastic pollution on shorelines worldwide. In this study, for the first time, we have examined the occurrence of MPPs and their spatial and seasonal distributions, adsorbed contaminants, polymer composition, and ecological risks at eight renowned beaches of Andhra Pradesh, central east coast of India. A total of 3950 MPPs were collected from eight beaches along the central east coast of India during October 2020, representing pre-northeast monsoon (pNEM), and during January 2021, representing the northeast monsoon (NEM). The abundance of MPPs was higher during the NEM than those found in the pNEM. ATR-FTIR and SEM analyses were conducted to characterize the polymer types and weathering patterns of MPPs. Energy-Dispersive X-ray spectrometer (EDS) results show the MPP adsorbance of heavy metals such as Ni, Cr, Cu, Pb, and Zn. The degree of contamination and polymer hazard risks of MPPs were assessed using the pollution load index (PLI) and polymer hazard index (PHI). The conducive wind and currents during the NEM lead to higher MPP abundance than during the pNEM. However, the spatial variations of MPPs showed significant differences among the beaches. This study revealed that the presence of MPPs on the beaches along the central east coast of India might pose a considerable polymer hazard risk to the ecosystem. The substantial surface weathering features of MPPs would lead to more toxic nanoplastics in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mallela Pruthvi Raju
- Department of Meteorology and Oceanography, Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, 530003, India
| | | | - Vasimalla Suneel
- CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography, Goa, 403004, Dona Paula, India.
- Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, 201002, India.
| | - Mahua Saha
- CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography, Goa, 403004, Dona Paula, India
- Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, 201002, India
| | - Chayanika Rathore
- CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography, Goa, 403004, Dona Paula, India
- Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, 201002, India
| | - Akshata Naik
- CSIR-National Institute of Oceanography, Goa, 403004, Dona Paula, India
| | - Pilli Suneetha
- Department of Meteorology and Oceanography, Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, 530003, India
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De-la-Torre GE, Pizarro-Ortega CI, Dioses-Salinas DC, Ribeiro VV, Urizar Garfias Reyes DF, Ben-Haddad M, Rakib MRJ, Dobaradaran S. Micro- and mesoplastic pollution along the coast of Peru. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2023:10.1007/s11356-023-27707-6. [PMID: 37199842 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-27707-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2023] [Accepted: 05/13/2023] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Peru suffers from poor solid waste and coastal management, as well as evidenced plastic pollution in various forms. However, studies in Peru focusing on small plastic debris (i.e., meso- and microplastics) are still limited and inconclusive. Thus, the present study investigated the abundance, characteristics, seasonality, and distribution of small plastic debris along the coast of Peru. The abundance of small plastic debris is predominantly driven by specific locations, where a source of contamination is present, rather than presenting seasonal patterns. Meso- and microplastics were strongly correlated in both seasons (summer and winter), suggesting meso-plastic constantly breaking down as microplastic sources. Additionally, heavy metals (e.g., Cu, Pb) were found in low concentrations (mean concentrations < 0.4%) on the surface of some mesoplastics. Here, we provided a baseline on the multiple factors involving small plastic debris on the Peruvian coast and preliminarily identify associated contaminants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel Enrique De-la-Torre
- Grupo de Investigación de Biodiversidad, Medio Ambiente Y Sociedad, Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola, Lima, Peru.
| | | | | | | | - Damarisch Fernanda Urizar Garfias Reyes
- Círculo de Investigación en Contaminación Por Plásticos, Universidad Nacional Agraria La Molina, Lima, Peru
- Grupo de Investigación Salud Pública, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima, Peru
| | - Mohamed Ben-Haddad
- Laboratory of Aquatic Systems, Marine and Continental Environments, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Zohr University, Agadir, Morocco
| | - Md Refat Jahan Rakib
- Department of Fisheries and Marine Science, Faculty of Science, Noakhali Science and Technology University, Noakhali, Bangladesh
| | - Sina Dobaradaran
- Systems Environmental Health and Energy Research Center, The Persian Gulf Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
- Department of Environmental Health Engineering, Faculty of Health and Nutrition, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran
- Instrumental Analytical Chemistry and Centre for Water and Environmental Research (ZWU), Faculty of Chemistry, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitätsstr. 5, Essen, Germany
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Gacutan J, Tait H, Johnston EL, Clark GF. Assessing human and physical drivers of macro-plastic debris spatially across Queensland, Australia. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2023; 330:121731. [PMID: 37121305 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2023.121731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2023] [Revised: 04/24/2023] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Plastic pollution poses environmental and socio-economic risks, requiring policy and management interventions. The evidence-base for informing management and evaluation of their effectiveness is limited. Partnerships with citizen scientists provide opportunities to increase the spatio-temporal scale of monitoring programs, where training and standardised protocols provides opportunities for the use of data in addressing multiple hypotheses. Here, we provide a baseline of debris trends and infer debris drivers of abundance across 18° of latitude, using 168 surveys from 17 beaches across Queensland, Australia through the ReefClean project. Plastics were the dominant material (87% of total debris, with hard, soft and foam plastics aggregated), although linking recovered debris to sources was limited, as 67% of items were fragmented. We tested potential drivers of specific debris types (i.e., plastics, commercial fishing items, items dumped at-sea, and single-use items) and identified significant relationships between debris accumulation with distance from the nearest population centre and site characteristics (modal beach state, beach orientation and across-beach section). Management efforts should consider beach type and orientation within site selection, as an opportunity to maximise the amount recovered, alongside other criteria such as the risks posed by debris on environmental, economic, and social values. This study demonstrates the utility of citizen science to provide baselines and infer drivers of debris, through data gathered at scales that are infeasible to most formal monitoring programs. The identified drivers of debris may also differ from regional and global studies, where monitoring at relevant scales is needed for effective management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan Gacutan
- Global Ocean Accounts Partnership, Sustainable Development Reform Hub, Faculty of Law, UNSW Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
| | - Heidi Tait
- Tangaroa Blue Foundation, PO Box 1235, Dunsborough, WA, 6281, Australia
| | - Emma L Johnston
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Graeme F Clark
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW, 2006, Australia
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Mercy FT, Alam AR, Akbor MA. Abundance and characteristics of microplastics in major urban lakes of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Heliyon 2023; 9:e14587. [PMID: 37035360 PMCID: PMC10073641 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2022] [Revised: 02/07/2023] [Accepted: 03/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) are prevalent in nature due to the proliferation of plastic in the environment. However, the presence of microplastics in lakes is largely unknown in comparison to other aquatic bodies. This study was performed to evaluate the abundance and characteristics of MPs in water, sediment, and fish from three major urban lakes in Dhaka, Bangladesh, namely Dhanmondi, Gulshan, and Hatir Jheel lake. The highest concentrations of microplastics in surface water (36 items/L), sediment (67 items/kg), fish (17 items/individual), and the gastrointestinal tract (4.88 items/gm) were observed. Highest abundance of microplastic in an individual fish was observed in Oreochromis mossambicus from Dhanmondi Lake. The samples were visually examined using stereomicroscope and SEM, which revealed that films were the most prevalent kind of microplastics in both the water and the sediment samples, whereas pellets and foams predominated in the fish samples. Visual observation also revealed MPs dominated by <100 μm in size and transparent in color. According to the Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) analysis, the dominant polymers in the analyzed samples were high-density polyethylene, low-density polyethylene, ethylene vinyl acetate, polyvinyl chloride, polycarbonate, cellulose acetate, and polypropylene. MPs were relatively higher in the water and sediment samples of Gulshan Lake, and fish samples of Dhanmondi Lake. The results of this study indicate that microplastic contamination has occurred not only in the water and sediment but also in the inhabitant fishes of the lakes. However, it is discovered that the microplastic intake of fish was significantly related to body weight and length. The implication of the finding suggests that the presence of MPs in urban lakes has raised concerns about the potential human health impact.
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Landrigan PJ, Raps H, Cropper M, Bald C, Brunner M, Canonizado EM, Charles D, Chiles TC, Donohue MJ, Enck J, Fenichel P, Fleming LE, Ferrier-Pages C, Fordham R, Gozt A, Griffin C, Hahn ME, Haryanto B, Hixson R, Ianelli H, James BD, Kumar P, Laborde A, Law KL, Martin K, Mu J, Mulders Y, Mustapha A, Niu J, Pahl S, Park Y, Pedrotti ML, Pitt JA, Ruchirawat M, Seewoo BJ, Spring M, Stegeman JJ, Suk W, Symeonides C, Takada H, Thompson RC, Vicini A, Wang Z, Whitman E, Wirth D, Wolff M, Yousuf AK, Dunlop S. The Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health. Ann Glob Health 2023; 89:23. [PMID: 36969097 PMCID: PMC10038118 DOI: 10.5334/aogh.4056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 53.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Plastics have conveyed great benefits to humanity and made possible some of the most significant advances of modern civilization in fields as diverse as medicine, electronics, aerospace, construction, food packaging, and sports. It is now clear, however, that plastics are also responsible for significant harms to human health, the economy, and the earth's environment. These harms occur at every stage of the plastic life cycle, from extraction of the coal, oil, and gas that are its main feedstocks through to ultimate disposal into the environment. The extent of these harms not been systematically assessed, their magnitude not fully quantified, and their economic costs not comprehensively counted. Goals The goals of this Minderoo-Monaco Commission on Plastics and Human Health are to comprehensively examine plastics' impacts across their life cycle on: (1) human health and well-being; (2) the global environment, especially the ocean; (3) the economy; and (4) vulnerable populations-the poor, minorities, and the world's children. On the basis of this examination, the Commission offers science-based recommendations designed to support development of a Global Plastics Treaty, protect human health, and save lives. Report Structure This Commission report contains seven Sections. Following an Introduction, Section 2 presents a narrative review of the processes involved in plastic production, use, and disposal and notes the hazards to human health and the environment associated with each of these stages. Section 3 describes plastics' impacts on the ocean and notes the potential for plastic in the ocean to enter the marine food web and result in human exposure. Section 4 details plastics' impacts on human health. Section 5 presents a first-order estimate of plastics' health-related economic costs. Section 6 examines the intersection between plastic, social inequity, and environmental injustice. Section 7 presents the Commission's findings and recommendations. Plastics Plastics are complex, highly heterogeneous, synthetic chemical materials. Over 98% of plastics are produced from fossil carbon- coal, oil and gas. Plastics are comprised of a carbon-based polymer backbone and thousands of additional chemicals that are incorporated into polymers to convey specific properties such as color, flexibility, stability, water repellence, flame retardation, and ultraviolet resistance. Many of these added chemicals are highly toxic. They include carcinogens, neurotoxicants and endocrine disruptors such as phthalates, bisphenols, per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), brominated flame retardants, and organophosphate flame retardants. They are integral components of plastic and are responsible for many of plastics' harms to human health and the environment.Global plastic production has increased almost exponentially since World War II, and in this time more than 8,300 megatons (Mt) of plastic have been manufactured. Annual production volume has grown from under 2 Mt in 1950 to 460 Mt in 2019, a 230-fold increase, and is on track to triple by 2060. More than half of all plastic ever made has been produced since 2002. Single-use plastics account for 35-40% of current plastic production and represent the most rapidly growing segment of plastic manufacture.Explosive recent growth in plastics production reflects a deliberate pivot by the integrated multinational fossil-carbon corporations that produce coal, oil and gas and that also manufacture plastics. These corporations are reducing their production of fossil fuels and increasing plastics manufacture. The two principal factors responsible for this pivot are decreasing global demand for carbon-based fuels due to increases in 'green' energy, and massive expansion of oil and gas production due to fracking.Plastic manufacture is energy-intensive and contributes significantly to climate change. At present, plastic production is responsible for an estimated 3.7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, more than the contribution of Brazil. This fraction is projected to increase to 4.5% by 2060 if current trends continue unchecked. Plastic Life Cycle The plastic life cycle has three phases: production, use, and disposal. In production, carbon feedstocks-coal, gas, and oil-are transformed through energy-intensive, catalytic processes into a vast array of products. Plastic use occurs in every aspect of modern life and results in widespread human exposure to the chemicals contained in plastic. Single-use plastics constitute the largest portion of current use, followed by synthetic fibers and construction.Plastic disposal is highly inefficient, with recovery and recycling rates below 10% globally. The result is that an estimated 22 Mt of plastic waste enters the environment each year, much of it single-use plastic and are added to the more than 6 gigatons of plastic waste that have accumulated since 1950. Strategies for disposal of plastic waste include controlled and uncontrolled landfilling, open burning, thermal conversion, and export. Vast quantities of plastic waste are exported each year from high-income to low-income countries, where it accumulates in landfills, pollutes air and water, degrades vital ecosystems, befouls beaches and estuaries, and harms human health-environmental injustice on a global scale. Plastic-laden e-waste is particularly problematic. Environmental Findings Plastics and plastic-associated chemicals are responsible for widespread pollution. They contaminate aquatic (marine and freshwater), terrestrial, and atmospheric environments globally. The ocean is the ultimate destination for much plastic, and plastics are found throughout the ocean, including coastal regions, the sea surface, the deep sea, and polar sea ice. Many plastics appear to resist breakdown in the ocean and could persist in the global environment for decades. Macro- and micro-plastic particles have been identified in hundreds of marine species in all major taxa, including species consumed by humans. Trophic transfer of microplastic particles and the chemicals within them has been demonstrated. Although microplastic particles themselves (>10 µm) appear not to undergo biomagnification, hydrophobic plastic-associated chemicals bioaccumulate in marine animals and biomagnify in marine food webs. The amounts and fates of smaller microplastic and nanoplastic particles (MNPs <10 µm) in aquatic environments are poorly understood, but the potential for harm is worrying given their mobility in biological systems. Adverse environmental impacts of plastic pollution occur at multiple levels from molecular and biochemical to population and ecosystem. MNP contamination of seafood results in direct, though not well quantified, human exposure to plastics and plastic-associated chemicals. Marine plastic pollution endangers the ocean ecosystems upon which all humanity depends for food, oxygen, livelihood, and well-being. Human Health Findings Coal miners, oil workers and gas field workers who extract fossil carbon feedstocks for plastic production suffer increased mortality from traumatic injury, coal workers' pneumoconiosis, silicosis, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lung cancer. Plastic production workers are at increased risk of leukemia, lymphoma, hepatic angiosarcoma, brain cancer, breast cancer, mesothelioma, neurotoxic injury, and decreased fertility. Workers producing plastic textiles die of bladder cancer, lung cancer, mesothelioma, and interstitial lung disease at increased rates. Plastic recycling workers have increased rates of cardiovascular disease, toxic metal poisoning, neuropathy, and lung cancer. Residents of "fenceline" communities adjacent to plastic production and waste disposal sites experience increased risks of premature birth, low birth weight, asthma, childhood leukemia, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lung cancer.During use and also in disposal, plastics release toxic chemicals including additives and residual monomers into the environment and into people. National biomonitoring surveys in the USA document population-wide exposures to these chemicals. Plastic additives disrupt endocrine function and increase risk for premature births, neurodevelopmental disorders, male reproductive birth defects, infertility, obesity, cardiovascular disease, renal disease, and cancers. Chemical-laden MNPs formed through the environmental degradation of plastic waste can enter living organisms, including humans. Emerging, albeit still incomplete evidence indicates that MNPs may cause toxicity due to their physical and toxicological effects as well as by acting as vectors that transport toxic chemicals and bacterial pathogens into tissues and cells.Infants in the womb and young children are two populations at particularly high risk of plastic-related health effects. Because of the exquisite sensitivity of early development to hazardous chemicals and children's unique patterns of exposure, plastic-associated exposures are linked to increased risks of prematurity, stillbirth, low birth weight, birth defects of the reproductive organs, neurodevelopmental impairment, impaired lung growth, and childhood cancer. Early-life exposures to plastic-associated chemicals also increase the risk of multiple non-communicable diseases later in life. Economic Findings Plastic's harms to human health result in significant economic costs. We estimate that in 2015 the health-related costs of plastic production exceeded $250 billion (2015 Int$) globally, and that in the USA alone the health costs of disease and disability caused by the plastic-associated chemicals PBDE, BPA and DEHP exceeded $920 billion (2015 Int$). Plastic production results in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions equivalent to 1.96 gigatons of carbon dioxide (CO2e) annually. Using the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) social cost of carbon metric, we estimate the annual costs of these GHG emissions to be $341 billion (2015 Int$).These costs, large as they are, almost certainly underestimate the full economic losses resulting from plastics' negative impacts on human health and the global environment. All of plastics' economic costs-and also its social costs-are externalized by the petrochemical and plastic manufacturing industry and are borne by citizens, taxpayers, and governments in countries around the world without compensation. Social Justice Findings The adverse effects of plastics and plastic pollution on human health, the economy and the environment are not evenly distributed. They disproportionately affect poor, disempowered, and marginalized populations such as workers, racial and ethnic minorities, "fenceline" communities, Indigenous groups, women, and children, all of whom had little to do with creating the current plastics crisis and lack the political influence or the resources to address it. Plastics' harmful impacts across its life cycle are most keenly felt in the Global South, in small island states, and in disenfranchised areas in the Global North. Social and environmental justice (SEJ) principles require reversal of these inequitable burdens to ensure that no group bears a disproportionate share of plastics' negative impacts and that those who benefit economically from plastic bear their fair share of its currently externalized costs. Conclusions It is now clear that current patterns of plastic production, use, and disposal are not sustainable and are responsible for significant harms to human health, the environment, and the economy as well as for deep societal injustices.The main driver of these worsening harms is an almost exponential and still accelerating increase in global plastic production. Plastics' harms are further magnified by low rates of recovery and recycling and by the long persistence of plastic waste in the environment.The thousands of chemicals in plastics-monomers, additives, processing agents, and non-intentionally added substances-include amongst their number known human carcinogens, endocrine disruptors, neurotoxicants, and persistent organic pollutants. These chemicals are responsible for many of plastics' known harms to human and planetary health. The chemicals leach out of plastics, enter the environment, cause pollution, and result in human exposure and disease. All efforts to reduce plastics' hazards must address the hazards of plastic-associated chemicals. Recommendations To protect human and planetary health, especially the health of vulnerable and at-risk populations, and put the world on track to end plastic pollution by 2040, this Commission supports urgent adoption by the world's nations of a strong and comprehensive Global Plastics Treaty in accord with the mandate set forth in the March 2022 resolution of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA).International measures such as a Global Plastics Treaty are needed to curb plastic production and pollution, because the harms to human health and the environment caused by plastics, plastic-associated chemicals and plastic waste transcend national boundaries, are planetary in their scale, and have disproportionate impacts on the health and well-being of people in the world's poorest nations. Effective implementation of the Global Plastics Treaty will require that international action be coordinated and complemented by interventions at the national, regional, and local levels.This Commission urges that a cap on global plastic production with targets, timetables, and national contributions be a central provision of the Global Plastics Treaty. We recommend inclusion of the following additional provisions:The Treaty needs to extend beyond microplastics and marine litter to include all of the many thousands of chemicals incorporated into plastics.The Treaty needs to include a provision banning or severely restricting manufacture and use of unnecessary, avoidable, and problematic plastic items, especially single-use items such as manufactured plastic microbeads.The Treaty needs to include requirements on extended producer responsibility (EPR) that make fossil carbon producers, plastic producers, and the manufacturers of plastic products legally and financially responsible for the safety and end-of-life management of all the materials they produce and sell.The Treaty needs to mandate reductions in the chemical complexity of plastic products; health-protective standards for plastics and plastic additives; a requirement for use of sustainable non-toxic materials; full disclosure of all components; and traceability of components. International cooperation will be essential to implementing and enforcing these standards.The Treaty needs to include SEJ remedies at each stage of the plastic life cycle designed to fill gaps in community knowledge and advance both distributional and procedural equity.This Commission encourages inclusion in the Global Plastic Treaty of a provision calling for exploration of listing at least some plastic polymers as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) under the Stockholm Convention.This Commission encourages a strong interface between the Global Plastics Treaty and the Basel and London Conventions to enhance management of hazardous plastic waste and slow current massive exports of plastic waste into the world's least-developed countries.This Commission recommends the creation of a Permanent Science Policy Advisory Body to guide the Treaty's implementation. The main priorities of this Body would be to guide Member States and other stakeholders in evaluating which solutions are most effective in reducing plastic consumption, enhancing plastic waste recovery and recycling, and curbing the generation of plastic waste. This Body could also assess trade-offs among these solutions and evaluate safer alternatives to current plastics. It could monitor the transnational export of plastic waste. It could coordinate robust oceanic-, land-, and air-based MNP monitoring programs.This Commission recommends urgent investment by national governments in research into solutions to the global plastic crisis. This research will need to determine which solutions are most effective and cost-effective in the context of particular countries and assess the risks and benefits of proposed solutions. Oceanographic and environmental research is needed to better measure concentrations and impacts of plastics <10 µm and understand their distribution and fate in the global environment. Biomedical research is needed to elucidate the human health impacts of plastics, especially MNPs. Summary This Commission finds that plastics are both a boon to humanity and a stealth threat to human and planetary health. Plastics convey enormous benefits, but current linear patterns of plastic production, use, and disposal that pay little attention to sustainable design or safe materials and a near absence of recovery, reuse, and recycling are responsible for grave harms to health, widespread environmental damage, great economic costs, and deep societal injustices. These harms are rapidly worsening.While there remain gaps in knowledge about plastics' harms and uncertainties about their full magnitude, the evidence available today demonstrates unequivocally that these impacts are great and that they will increase in severity in the absence of urgent and effective intervention at global scale. Manufacture and use of essential plastics may continue. However, reckless increases in plastic production, and especially increases in the manufacture of an ever-increasing array of unnecessary single-use plastic products, need to be curbed.Global intervention against the plastic crisis is needed now because the costs of failure to act will be immense.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip J. Landrigan
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
- Centre Scientifique de Monaco, Medical Biology Department, MC
| | - Hervé Raps
- Centre Scientifique de Monaco, Medical Biology Department, MC
| | - Maureen Cropper
- Economics Department, University of Maryland, College Park, US
| | - Caroline Bald
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Patrick Fenichel
- Université Côte d’Azur
- Centre Hospitalier, Universitaire de Nice, FR
| | - Lora E. Fleming
- European Centre for Environment and Human Health, University of Exeter Medical School, UK
| | | | | | | | - Carly Griffin
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | - Mark E. Hahn
- Biology Department, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, US
- Woods Hole Center for Oceans and Human Health, US
| | - Budi Haryanto
- Department of Environmental Health, Universitas Indonesia, ID
- Research Center for Climate Change, Universitas Indonesia, ID
| | - Richard Hixson
- College of Medicine and Health, University of Exeter, UK
| | - Hannah Ianelli
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | - Bryan D. James
- Department of Marine Chemistry and Geochemistry, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
- Department of Biology, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, US
| | | | - Amalia Laborde
- Department of Toxicology, School of Medicine, University of the Republic, UY
| | | | - Keith Martin
- Consortium of Universities for Global Health, US
| | - Jenna Mu
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | | | - Adetoun Mustapha
- Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, Lagos, Nigeria
- Lead City University, NG
| | - Jia Niu
- Department of Chemistry, Boston College, US
| | - Sabine Pahl
- University of Vienna, Austria
- University of Plymouth, UK
| | | | - Maria-Luiza Pedrotti
- Laboratoire d’Océanographie de Villefranche sur mer (LOV), Sorbonne Université, FR
| | | | | | - Bhedita Jaya Seewoo
- Minderoo Foundation, AU
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, AU
| | | | - John J. Stegeman
- Biology Department and Woods Hole Center for Oceans and Human Health, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, US
| | - William Suk
- Superfund Research Program, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, US
| | | | - Hideshige Takada
- Laboratory of Organic Geochemistry (LOG), Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, JP
| | | | | | - Zhanyun Wang
- Technology and Society Laboratory, WEmpa-Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials and Technology, CH
| | - Ella Whitman
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | | | | | - Aroub K. Yousuf
- Global Observatory on Planetary Health, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, US
| | - Sarah Dunlop
- Minderoo Foundation, AU
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Western Australia, AU
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Paganos P, Ullmann CV, Gaglio D, Bonanomi M, Salmistraro N, Arnone MI, Jimenez-Guri E. Plastic leachate-induced toxicity during sea urchin embryonic development: Insights into the molecular pathways affected by PVC. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 864:160901. [PMID: 36526210 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.160901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Microplastics are now polluting all seas and, while studies have found numerous negative interactions between plastic pollution and marine animals, the effects on embryonic development are poorly understood. A potentially important source of developmental ecotoxicity comes from chemicals leached from plastic particles to the marine environment. Here we investigate the effects of leachates from new and beach-collected pellets on the embryonic and larval development of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus purpuratus and demonstrate that exposure of developing embryos to these leachates elicits severe, consistent and treatment-specific developmental abnormalities including radialisation of the embryo and malformation of the skeleton, neural and immune cells. Using a multi-omics approach we define the developmental pathways disturbed upon exposure to PVC leachates and provide a mechanistic view that pinpoints cellular redox stress and energy production as drivers of phenotypic abnormalities following exposure to PVC leachates. Analysis of leachates identified high concentrations of zinc that are the likely cause of these observed defects. Our findings point to clear and specific detrimental effects of marine plastic pollution on the development of echinoderms, demonstrating that chemicals leached from plastic particles into sea water can produce strong developmental abnormalities via specific pathways, and therefore have the potential to impact on a wide range of organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Periklis Paganos
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Naples, Italy.
| | - Clemens Vinzenz Ullmann
- Department for Earth and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Environment, Science and Economy, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Penryn, UK.
| | - Daniela Gaglio
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology (IBFM), National Research Council (CNR), Segrate, Milan, Italy; ISBE, IT/Centre of Systems Biology-Elixir Infrastructure and NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy.
| | - Marcella Bonanomi
- Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy; ISBE, IT/Centre of Systems Biology-Elixir Infrastructure and NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy.
| | - Noemi Salmistraro
- Institute of Molecular Bioimaging and Physiology (IBFM), National Research Council (CNR), Segrate, Milan, Italy; ISBE, IT/Centre of Systems Biology-Elixir Infrastructure and NBFC, National Biodiversity Future Center, Palermo, Italy.
| | - Maria Ina Arnone
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Naples, Italy.
| | - Eva Jimenez-Guri
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Department of Biology and Evolution of Marine Organisms, Naples, Italy; Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK.
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Park TJ, Kim MK, Lee SH, Kim MJ, Lee YS, Lee BM, Seong KS, Park JH, Zoh KD. Temporal and spatial distribution of microplastic in the sediment of the Han River, South Korea. CHEMOSPHERE 2023; 317:137831. [PMID: 36640985 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2023.137831] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Sediments are sinks for microplastics (MPs) in freshwater environments. It is, therefore, necessary to investigate the occurrence and fate of accumulated MPs in the sediments, which pose a risk to aquatic organisms. We conducted the first comprehensive investigation of MPs in riverine sediment in South Korea to examine the temporal and spatial distribution of MPs in the sediment at the two main branches and downstream of the Han River. The average abundance of MPs over all sites was 0.494 ± 0.280 particles/g. Spatially, the MP abundance at three sites in the North Han River (0.546 ± 0.217 particles/g) was higher than those in the South Han River (0.383 ± 0.145 particles/g) and downstream of the Han River (0.417 ± 0.114 particles/g). The abundances of MPs before dams at two upstream sites were significantly higher than that at other sites because of the slow river flow velocity attributed to the artificial structure. The abundance of MPs after the mosoon season (October, 0.600 ± 0.357 particles/g) was higher than that before the mosoon season (April, 0.389 ± 0.099 particles/g). The most common polymer types observed were polyethylene (>38%) and polypropylene (>24%). Irrespective of the location and season, greater than 93% of MPs identified were fragments, and the remaining were fibers. The concentrations of TOC, TN, and TP in the sediment were positively correlated with MP abundance. MP abundance was also positively correlated with clay and silt fractions of the sediment; however, it was negatively correlated with sand fraction. This study provides a basis for the management of MP pollution by offering findings related to critical factors influencing MP abundance in sediment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tae-Jin Park
- Water Environmental Engineering Research Division, National Institute of Environmental Research, Environmental Research Complex, Incheon, South Korea
| | - Moon-Kyung Kim
- Institute of Health & Environment Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Seung-Hyun Lee
- Water Environmental Engineering Research Division, National Institute of Environmental Research, Environmental Research Complex, Incheon, South Korea
| | - Mun-Ju Kim
- Water Environmental Engineering Research Division, National Institute of Environmental Research, Environmental Research Complex, Incheon, South Korea
| | - Young-Sun Lee
- Water Environmental Engineering Research Division, National Institute of Environmental Research, Environmental Research Complex, Incheon, South Korea
| | - Bo-Mi Lee
- Han River Environment Research Center, National Institute of Environmental Research, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea
| | - Ki-Seon Seong
- Han River Environment Research Center, National Institute of Environmental Research, Gyeonggi Province, South Korea
| | - Ji-Hyoung Park
- Water Environmental Engineering Research Division, National Institute of Environmental Research, Environmental Research Complex, Incheon, South Korea
| | - Kyung-Duk Zoh
- Institute of Health & Environment Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea.
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28
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Davies JF, Seglenieks R, Cameron R, Kuruvilla NA, Grove EM, Shrivathsa A, Grobler S. Operation clean up: A model for eco-leadership and sustainability implementation. Anaesth Intensive Care 2023; 51:88-95. [PMID: 36721955 DOI: 10.1177/0310057x221102469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
Healthcare contributes to environmental harm. Trainee-led Research and Audit in Anaesthesia for Sustainable Healthcare (TRA2SH) is an Australasian network focused on sustainable anaesthesia practice. TRA2SH hypothesised that trainee-led audits alongside education presented on a scheduled national day, called Operation Clean Up, can improve engagement with sustainability initiatives. This paper aims to describe the first two years of Operation Clean Up in terms of goals, achievements and data collected so far. Environmental themes for Operation Clean Up were chosen based on available evidence (life cycle analyses and observational studies). The first Operation Clean Up (OCU 2020) focused on reducing the unnecessary use of single-use disposable absorbent pads (known as 'blueys' in Australia, 'greenies' in New Zealand). OCU 2021 included: refuse desflurane, reduce bluey use, reuse drug trays, and recycle paper and cardboard. TRA2SH provided an information pack to trainees who presented educational material to their department and fed back procurement figures to quantify each item. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse de-identified pooled data submitted to a centralised database.Eight departments submitted data for OCU 2020 and six provided follow-up data. Bluey use was reduced from a median of 37 to 34 blueys per ten surgical encounters. Fifteen departments submitted pre-campaign data for OCU 2021 with follow-up data to be collected during OCU 2022. Baseline data showed a median bluey use of 31 per ten surgical encounters. Volatile-related emissions were calculated; desflurane's proportion was 70% of these emissions yet was 11% of volatile procurement. Two participating departments removed desflurane from their formulary following OCU 2021. Operation Clean Up is a practical model for implementing sustainability initiatives using trainees as eco-leaders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica F Davies
- Department of Anaesthesia, 3805Austin Health, Heidelberg, Australia.,Department of Critical Care, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Richard Seglenieks
- Department of Critical Care, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia.,Department of Anaesthesia, Pain and Perioperative Medicine, Western Health, Footscray, Victoria
| | - Rose Cameron
- Department of Anaesthesia, 58991Auckland City Hospital, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Niketh A Kuruvilla
- Department of Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine, Mercy Health, Heidelberg, Australia.,Department of Anaesthesia, Perioperative Medicine and Pain Management, Canberra Health, Canberra, Australia
| | - Emma M Grove
- Department of Anaesthesia, 4085Ipswich Hospital, West Moreton Health, Australia
| | - Archana Shrivathsa
- Department of Anaesthesia, Pain and Perioperative Medicine, Fiona Stanley and Fremantle Hospitals Group, Perth, Australia
| | - Sophia Grobler
- Department of Critical Care, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
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Nash R, Joyce H, Pagter E, Frias J, Guinan J, Healy L, Kavanagh F, Deegan M, O'Sullivan D. Deep Sea Microplastic Pollution Extends Out to Sediments in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean Margins. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2023; 57:201-213. [PMID: 36563299 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c05926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Microplastics are ubiquitous emerging contaminants found in every habitat surveyed, building upon international databases globally. Costs and accessibility often correlate to few deep sea sediment surveys, restricting the number of stations within a given sampling area. An extensive survey of the Porcupine Seabight, Porcupine Bank, the Goban Spur, and south-western canyons resulted in identifying microplastics in deep sea sediment surface layers from 33 of the 44 stations sampled (75%), with a total of 83 particles (74 synthetic and 9 natural) recorded. No microplastic hotspots were identified, and abundances (kg d.w.-1) were not correlated with distance from land, depth, or the presence of macrolitter on the seafloor. Understanding the sources of deep sea microplastics, such as marine traffic, is crucial to developing effective mitigation strategies as well as further monitoring campaigns targeting microplastic pollution in areas with significant deep sea biodiversity such as the Porcupine Seabright.
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Affiliation(s)
- Róisín Nash
- Marine and Freshwater Research Centre (MFRC), Atlantic Technological University, Galway (ATU, Galway), Old Dublin Road, Galway H91 T8NW, Ireland
| | - Haleigh Joyce
- Marine and Freshwater Research Centre (MFRC), Atlantic Technological University, Galway (ATU, Galway), Old Dublin Road, Galway H91 T8NW, Ireland
| | - Elena Pagter
- Marine and Freshwater Research Centre (MFRC), Atlantic Technological University, Galway (ATU, Galway), Old Dublin Road, Galway H91 T8NW, Ireland
- Marine Institute, Rinville, Oranmore, Co., Galway H91 R673, Ireland
| | - João Frias
- Marine and Freshwater Research Centre (MFRC), Atlantic Technological University, Galway (ATU, Galway), Old Dublin Road, Galway H91 T8NW, Ireland
| | - Janine Guinan
- Geological Survey Ireland, Block 1, Booterstown Hall, Booterstown, Blackrock, Co., Dublin A94 N2R6, Ireland
| | - Louise Healy
- Marine Institute, Rinville, Oranmore, Co., Galway H91 R673, Ireland
| | - Fiona Kavanagh
- Marine and Freshwater Research Centre (MFRC), Atlantic Technological University, Galway (ATU, Galway), Old Dublin Road, Galway H91 T8NW, Ireland
| | | | - David O'Sullivan
- Marine Institute, Rinville, Oranmore, Co., Galway H91 R673, Ireland
- INFOMAR, Marine Institute, Rinville, Oranmore, Co., Galway H91 R673, Ireland
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30
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Sinsukudomchai P, Aht-Ong D, Honda K, Napathorn SC. Green composites made of polyhydroxybutyrate and long-chain fatty acid esterified microcrystalline cellulose from pineapple leaf. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0282311. [PMID: 36867618 PMCID: PMC9983910 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2022] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 03/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Pineapple leaf fibres are an abundant agricultural waste product that contains 26.9% cellulose. The objective of this study was to prepare fully degradable green biocomposites made of polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) and microcrystalline cellulose from pineapple leaf fibres (PALF-MCC). To improve compatibility with PHB, the PALF-MCC was surface modified using lauroyl chloride as an esterifying agent. The influence of the esterified PALF-MCC laurate content and changes in the film surface morphology on biocomposite properties was studied. The thermal properties obtained by differential scanning calorimetry revealed a decrease in crystallinity for all biocomposites, with 100 wt% PHB displaying the highest values, whereas 100 wt% esterified PALF-MCC laurate showed no crystallinity. The addition of esterified PALF-MCC laurate increased the degradation temperature. The maximum tensile strength and elongation at break were exhibited when adding 5% of PALF-MCC. The results demonstrated that adding esterified PALF-MCC laurate as a filler in the biocomposite film could retain a pleasant value of tensile strength and elastic modulus whereas a slight increase in elongation can help to enhance flexibility. For soil burial testing, PHB/ esterified PALF-MCC laurate films with 5-20% (w/w) PALF-MCC laurate ester had higher degradation than films consisting of 100% PHB or 100% esterified PALF-MCC laurate. PHB and esterified PALF-MCC laurate derived from pineapple agricultural wastes are particularly suitable for the production of relatively low-cost biocomposite films that are 100% compostable in soil.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pitchanun Sinsukudomchai
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Patumwan, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Duangdao Aht-Ong
- Department of Materials Science, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Patumwan, Bangkok, Thailand
- Center of Excellence on Petrochemical and Materials Technology, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Kohsuke Honda
- International Center for Biotechnology, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, Japan
| | - Suchada Chanprateep Napathorn
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Patumwan, Bangkok, Thailand
- International Center for Biotechnology, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, Japan
- * E-mail:
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31
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Kallenbach EMF, Eriksen TE, Hurley RR, Jacobsen D, Singdahl-Larsen C, Friberg N. Plastic recycling plant as a point source of microplastics to sediment and macroinvertebrates in a remote stream. MICROPLASTICS AND NANOPLASTICS 2022; 2:26. [PMID: 36532855 PMCID: PMC9734615 DOI: 10.1186/s43591-022-00045-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/18/2022] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED Microplastic is now ubiquitous in freshwater, sediment and biota, globally. This is as a consequence of inputs from, for example, waste mismanagement, effluents from wastewater treatment plants and surface runoff from agricultural areas. In this study, we investigated point source pollution of plastic to an upland stream, originating from a recycling plant that recycles polyethylene film in a remote area of Norway. Sediment (~2 kg) and macroinvertebrates (549 individuals in total) were sampled at one site upstream and two sites downstream of the recycling plant to study microplastic deposition and food web uptake. In total, 340 microplastic films were identified through a combination of visual and µFTIR analysis in the sediment samples. This corresponded to a concentration of 0.23 (± 0.057) items per g sediment upstream of the plastic recycling plant and 0.45 (± 0.017) and 0.58 (± 0.34) items per g downstream. The dominant plastic polymer was polyethylene, which increased significantly downstream of the plastic recycling plant. This indicates the role of the plastic recycling plant as a point source for microplastic in this catchment. Among the three sites investigated, a fairly constant concentration of polypropylene was found, indicating a diffuse source of polypropylene films across the catchment possibly relating to low-intensity agricultural land-use. Low levels of polyethylene were also observed upstream, which may be linked to either local or longer-distance atmospheric transport. Despite the considerable presence of microplastic in sediments, concentrations in macroinvertebrates were extremely low with only a single microplastic particle identified in the total of 549 macroinvertebrates-belonging to three different feeding groups-investigated. Our study suggests that: 1) microplastic pollution can be transferred to remote areas as unintended losses from recycling facilities, 2) remote areas with limited land-use pressure still have detectable levels of microplastic and 3) microplastic is only taken up by stream macroinvertebrates to a limited degree despite relatively high sediment concentrations, and thus there are no strong indications for ecological risks posed by microplastic to this ecological group at this location. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s43591-022-00045-z.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emilie M. F. Kallenbach
- NIVA Denmark Water Research, Njalsgade 76, 2300 Copenhagen S, Denmark
- University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 4, Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
| | | | | | - Dean Jacobsen
- University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 4, Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
| | | | - Nikolai Friberg
- NIVA Denmark Water Research, Njalsgade 76, 2300 Copenhagen S, Denmark
- University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 4, Copenhagen Ø, Denmark
- NIVA, Økernveien 94, 0579 Oslo, Norway
- Water@Leeds, School of Geography, University of Leeds, Leeds, LS2 9JT UK
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32
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Souza LA, Santos ACSS, Leão JM, Schaeppi OC, Hatje V. Occurrence and contents of trace metals and rare earth elements on plastic pellets. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2022; 185:114261. [PMID: 36347193 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114261] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2022] [Revised: 10/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/12/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
We determined the occurrence of pellets (2-5 mm) and their composition in terms of trace metals and rare earth elements (REE) on nine sandy beaches of the coast of Bahia, northeastern Brazil. We compared the occurrence of pellets between oceanic and sheltered beaches and the effect of fluvial contribution on the occurrence of these microplastics. The number of pellets found was surprisingly low (i.e., max 45 pellets per m2 in an oceanic beach without fluvial river inputs). Thus, the studied beaches exhibited a very low pollution index. Concentrations of ∑REE in pellets varied between 0.36 and 1.74 mg kg-1 and were ~5-fold higher in white/transparent pellets than in brown pellets. The sum of trace metals (i.e., Fe, Cd, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn) was also highest in the white pellets (357 ± 12 mg kg-1). Plastic pellets are a potentially important vector of REE exposition to biota.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laís A Souza
- Centro Interdisciplinar de Energia e Ambiente, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Ondina, Salvador, BA 40170-290, Brazil; Departamento de Química Fundamental, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Av. Jorn Aníbal Fernandes, s/n - Cidade Universitária, Recife, PE 50740-560, Brazil.
| | - Ana C S S Santos
- Centro Interdisciplinar de Energia e Ambiente, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Ondina, Salvador, BA 40170-290, Brazil
| | - Josepha M Leão
- Centro Interdisciplinar de Energia e Ambiente, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Ondina, Salvador, BA 40170-290, Brazil
| | - Otto C Schaeppi
- Centro Interdisciplinar de Energia e Ambiente, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Ondina, Salvador, BA 40170-290, Brazil
| | - Vanessa Hatje
- Centro Interdisciplinar de Energia e Ambiente, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Ondina, Salvador, BA 40170-290, Brazil; Instituto de Química, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Rua Barão de Jeremoabo, s/n, Ondina, Salvador, BA 40170-290, Brazil
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Jayathilaka RMRM, Weerakoon WRWMAP, Indika KW, Arulananthan K, Kithsiri HMP. Spatio-temporal variation of plastic pellets dispersion in the coastline of Sri Lanka: An assessment of pellets originated from the X-Press Pearl incident during the Southwest monsoon in 2021. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2022; 184:114145. [PMID: 36152496 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 09/13/2022] [Accepted: 09/14/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The objective of the research was to assess the spatio-temporal variation of plastic pellets dispersion in the coastline of Sri Lanka concerning the most tragic maritime accident of the cargo vessel; MV X-Press Pearl. Field sampling was carried in three intensive surveys during May and July 2021. A dry sieving procedure was employed to separate pellets followed by a chemical characterization using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic analysis. A pellet pollution index (PPI) was determined to compare the degree of pellet pollution. The dispersion peaked two weeks after the spill, with severe pollution levels (PPI: Extreme) found in about 40 % of the coastal stretch from Matara to Kalpitiya. The occurrence of pellets was lower on the Northeast coast of the island compared to the South-west coast. No pellets were recorded from the Northern coast (PPI: Very low). The connection between pollution levels and upper ocean dynamics were explored, with the findings being utilized to track plastic pellets for future spills.
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Affiliation(s)
- R M R M Jayathilaka
- National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA), Colombo 15, Sri Lanka; National Institute of Oceanography and Marine Sciences (NIOMS), NARA, Colombo 15, Sri Lanka.
| | - W R W M A P Weerakoon
- National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA), Colombo 15, Sri Lanka; National Institute of Oceanography and Marine Sciences (NIOMS), NARA, Colombo 15, Sri Lanka
| | - K W Indika
- National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA), Colombo 15, Sri Lanka; National Institute of Oceanography and Marine Sciences (NIOMS), NARA, Colombo 15, Sri Lanka
| | - K Arulananthan
- National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA), Colombo 15, Sri Lanka; National Institute of Oceanography and Marine Sciences (NIOMS), NARA, Colombo 15, Sri Lanka
| | - H M P Kithsiri
- National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA), Colombo 15, Sri Lanka
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Jones JS, Guézou A, Medor S, Nickson C, Savage G, Alarcón-Ruales D, Galloway TS, Muñoz-Pérez JP, Nelms SE, Porter A, Thiel M, Lewis C. Microplastic distribution and composition on two Galápagos island beaches, Ecuador: Verifying the use of citizen science derived data in long-term monitoring. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2022; 311:120011. [PMID: 35998775 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.120011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2022] [Revised: 07/29/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Monitoring beach plastic contamination across space and time is necessary for understanding its sources and ecological effects, and for guiding mitigation. This is logistically and financially challenging, especially for microplastics. Citizen science represents an option for sampling accessible sites to support long term monitoring, but challenges persist around data validation. Here we test a simple citizen science methodology to monitor visible microplastic contamination on sandy beaches using a standard quadrat unit (50 cm × 50 cm x 5 cm depth) sieved to 1 mm, to support the analysis of microplastic on two islands within the marine protected area of the Galápagos Archipelago, Ecuador (San Cristóbal and Santa Cruz islands). High school and university students undertook supervised sampling of two beaches in 2019-2020 collecting over 7000 particles. A sub-sample of the suspected microplastics collected (n = 2,213, ∼30% total) were analysed using FTIR spectrometry, confirming 93% of particles >1 mm visually identified by students were microplastics or rubber, validating this method as a crowd-sourced indicator for microplastic contamination. These data provide important insights into the plastic contamination of Galápagos, revealing plastic abundances of 0-2524 particles m-2 over the two beaches (the highest reported in Galápagos). Strong accumulation gradients were measured parallel to the waterline at Punta Pitt (San Cristobal island) and perpendicular to the waterline at Tortuga Bay (Santa Cruz island), where four-fold higher concentrations were recorded at the sea turtle nesting habitat on the back-beach dune. No significant seasonal trends were measured during one year. These results demonstrate the value of citizen science in filling spatiotemporal knowledge gaps of beach contamination to support intervention design and conservation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jen S Jones
- Galapagos Conservation Trust, 7-14 Great Dover Street, London, SE1 4YR, UK; Biosciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, EX4 4QD, UK
| | - Anne Guézou
- Galapagos Conservation Trust, 7-14 Great Dover Street, London, SE1 4YR, UK
| | - Sara Medor
- Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ) & UNC-Chapel Hill Galápagos Science Center (GSC), Av. Alsacio Northia, Isla San Cristobal, Galápagos, Ecuador
| | - Caitlin Nickson
- Biosciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, EX4 4QD, UK
| | - Georgie Savage
- Biosciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, EX4 4QD, UK
| | - Daniela Alarcón-Ruales
- Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ) & UNC-Chapel Hill Galápagos Science Center (GSC), Av. Alsacio Northia, Isla San Cristobal, Galápagos, Ecuador
| | - Tamara S Galloway
- Biosciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, EX4 4QD, UK
| | - Juan Pablo Muñoz-Pérez
- Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ) & UNC-Chapel Hill Galápagos Science Center (GSC), Av. Alsacio Northia, Isla San Cristobal, Galápagos, Ecuador; School of Science and Engineering, University of the Sunshine Coast, QLD, Hervey Bay, Australia
| | - Sarah E Nelms
- Centre for Ecology & Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Adam Porter
- Biosciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, EX4 4QD, UK
| | - Martin Thiel
- Universidad Católica del Norte, Facultad Ciencias del Mar, Larrondo, 1281, Coquimbo, Chile; Millennium Nucleus Ecology and Sustainable Management of Oceanic Island (ESMOI), Coquimbo, Chile; Centro de Estudios Avanzados en Zonas Áridas (CEAZA), Coquimbo, Chile
| | - Ceri Lewis
- Biosciences, College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Exeter, EX4 4QD, UK.
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35
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Jiang X, Conner N, Lu K, Tunnell JW, Liu Z. Occurrence, distribution, and associated pollutants of plastic pellets (nurdles) in coastal areas of South Texas. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 842:156826. [PMID: 35750165 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.156826] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Revised: 06/14/2022] [Accepted: 06/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Nurdles, also known as plastic resin pellets, are now a major source of plastic pollution on beaches globally, thus it is important to elucidate their weathering patterns and environmental fates as well as the associated pollutants. In this study we collected nurdles from 24 sites in the coastal bend region of south Texas, covering areas from the near shore railway stations to the adjacent bays and barrier islands. The morphologies of nurdles and associated pollutants including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and mercury, were investigated. The results showed that the nurdles varied greatly in color, shape, polymer composition, and oxidation degree. More than 80 % of the nurdles were made with polyethylene, and the rest with polypropylene, polyester, polystyrene, polyethylene-vinyl acetate, and polyvinyl chloride based on Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis. PCBs were not detected on nurdles. PAHs and mercury on nurdles were detected at 12 % and 20 % of the sampling sites. The total concentrations of detectable PAHs ranged from 92.59 to 1787.23 ng/g-nurdle, and the detectable mercury concentrations ranged from 1.23 to 22.25 ng/g-nurdle. Although the concentrations of these pollutants were not at the acute toxic effect level, the presence of PAHs and mercury suggested the potential risk of pollutant exposure to marine organisms in ecosystems, given the fact that nurdles are persistent in the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiangtao Jiang
- University of Texas Marine Science Institute, 750 Channel View Drive, Port Aransas, TX 78373, United States of America
| | - Niki Conner
- University of Texas Marine Science Institute, 750 Channel View Drive, Port Aransas, TX 78373, United States of America
| | - Kaijun Lu
- University of Texas Marine Science Institute, 750 Channel View Drive, Port Aransas, TX 78373, United States of America
| | - Jace W Tunnell
- University of Texas Marine Science Institute, 750 Channel View Drive, Port Aransas, TX 78373, United States of America
| | - Zhanfei Liu
- University of Texas Marine Science Institute, 750 Channel View Drive, Port Aransas, TX 78373, United States of America.
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Giugliano R, Cocciaro B, Poggialini F, Legnaioli S, Palleschi V, Locritani M, Merlino S. Rapid Identification of Beached Marine Plastics Pellets Using Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy: A Promising Tool for the Quantification of Coastal Pollution. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 22:s22186910. [PMID: 36146270 PMCID: PMC9502885 DOI: 10.3390/s22186910] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/08/2022] [Indexed: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
The rapid identification of beached marine micro-plastics is essential for the determination of the source of pollution and for planning the most effective strategies for remediation. In this paper, we present the results obtained by applying the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) technique on a large sample of different kinds of plastics that can be found in a marine environment. The use of chemometric analytical tools allowed a rapid classification of the pellets with an accuracy greater than 80%. The LIBS spectrum and statistical tests proved their worth to quickly identify polymers, and in particular, to distinguish C-O from C-C backbone pellets, and PE from PP ones. In addition, the PCA analysis revealed a correlation between appearance (surface pellets roughness) and color (yellowing), as reported by other recent studies. The preliminary results on the analysis of metals accumulated on the surface of the pellets are also reported. The implication of these results is discussed in view of the possibility of frequent monitoring of the marine plastic pollution on the seacoast.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roberta Giugliano
- The Veterinary Medical Research Institute for Piedmont, Liguria and the Aosta Valley (IZS PLVA), U. O. Chimico, S. S. Sezione di Genova-Portualità, Piazza Borgo Pila 39/int. 24, 16129 Genova, Italy
| | - Bruno Cocciaro
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche—Istituto di Chimica dei Composti Organo-Metallici (CNR-ICCOM), U. O. S. di Pisa, Area della Ricerca del CNR, Via G. Moruzzi, 1, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Francesco Poggialini
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche—Istituto di Chimica dei Composti Organo-Metallici (CNR-ICCOM), U. O. S. di Pisa, Area della Ricerca del CNR, Via G. Moruzzi, 1, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Stefano Legnaioli
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche—Istituto di Chimica dei Composti Organo-Metallici (CNR-ICCOM), U. O. S. di Pisa, Area della Ricerca del CNR, Via G. Moruzzi, 1, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Vincenzo Palleschi
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche—Istituto di Chimica dei Composti Organo-Metallici (CNR-ICCOM), U. O. S. di Pisa, Area della Ricerca del CNR, Via G. Moruzzi, 1, 56124 Pisa, Italy
- Correspondence:
| | - Marina Locritani
- Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione di Roma 2, Via di Vigna Murata 605, 00143 Roma, Italy
| | - Silvia Merlino
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche—Istituto di Scienze Marine (CNR-ISMAR), U. O. S. di Pozzuolo di Lerici, c/o Forte Santa Teresa—Loc. Pozzuolo di Lerici, 19032 Lerici, Italy
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Cordova MR, Ulumuddin YI, Purbonegoro T, Puspitasari R, Afianti NF, Rositasari R, Yogaswara D, Hafizt M, Iswari MY, Fitriya N, Widyastuti E, Kampono I, Kaisupy MT, Wibowo SPA, Subandi R, Sani SY, Sulistyowati L, Muhtadi A, Riani E, Cragg SM. Seasonal heterogeneity and a link to precipitation in the release of microplastic during COVID-19 outbreak from the Greater Jakarta area to Jakarta Bay, Indonesia. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2022; 181:113926. [PMID: 35841674 PMCID: PMC9288859 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2022] [Revised: 07/04/2022] [Accepted: 07/05/2022] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
To reduce microplastic contamination in the environment, we need to better understand its sources and transit, especially from land to sea. This study examines microplastic contamination in Jakarta's nine river outlets. Microplastics were found in all sampling intervals and areas, ranging from 4.29 to 23.49 particles m-3. The trend of microplastic contamination tends to increase as the anthropogenic activity towards Jakarta Bay from the eastern side of the bay. Our study found a link between rainfall and the abundance of microplastic particles in all river outlets studied. This investigation found polyethylene, polystyrene, and polypropylene in large proportion due to their widespread use in normal daily life and industrial applications. Our research observed an increase in microplastic fibers made of polypropylene over time. We suspect a relationship between COVID-19 PPE waste and microplastic shift in our study area. More research is needed to establish how and where microplastics enter rivers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Reza Cordova
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia.
| | - Yaya Ihya Ulumuddin
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Triyoni Purbonegoro
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Rachma Puspitasari
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Nur Fitriah Afianti
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Ricky Rositasari
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Deny Yogaswara
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Muhammad Hafizt
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Marindah Yulia Iswari
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Hydrodynamics Technology, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Mlati Jln. Grafika No.2 Sekip, Yogyakarta, Indonesia
| | - Nurul Fitriya
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Ernawati Widyastuti
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Irfan Kampono
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Muhammad Taufik Kaisupy
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Singgih Prasetyo Adi Wibowo
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Riyana Subandi
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Sofia Yuniar Sani
- Research Center for Oceanography, Indonesian Institute of Sciences, Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia; Research Center for Oceanography, National Research and Innovation Agency Republic of Indonesia, BRIN Kawasan Jakarta Ancol Jl. Pasir Putih 1, Ancol, 14430 Jakarta, Indonesia
| | - Lilik Sulistyowati
- Environmental Studies Graduate Program, Universitas Terbuka, Jl. Cabe Raya, Pondok Cabe, Pamulang Tangerang Selatan 15418, Indonesia
| | - Ahmad Muhtadi
- Department of Aquatic Resources Management, Faculty of Agriculture, Universitas Sumatera Utara, Jl. Prof. A. Sofyan No. 3, Medan 20222, Indonesia
| | - Etty Riani
- Department of Aquatic Resources Management, Faculty of Fishery and Marine Science, Bogor Agricultural University, Jl. Agatis Gedung Fakultas Perikanan dan Ilmu Kelautan, Kampus IPB Darmaga, Bogor 16680, Indonesia
| | - Simon M Cragg
- Institute of Marine Sciences, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, United Kingdom; Centre for Blue Governance, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, United Kingdom
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In situ laboratory for plastic degradation in the Red Sea. Sci Rep 2022; 12:11956. [PMID: 35831329 PMCID: PMC9279475 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-15310-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Degradation and fragmentation of plastics in the environment are still poorly understood. This is partly caused by the lack of long-term studies and methods that determine weathering duration. We here present a novel study object that preserves information on plastic age: microplastic (MP) resin pellets from the wreck of the SS Hamada, a ship that foundered twenty-nine years ago at the coast of Wadi el Gemal national park, Egypt. Its sinking date enabled us to precisely determine how long MP rested in the wreck and a nearby beach, on which part of the load was washed off. Pellets from both sampling sites were analyzed by microscopy, X-ray tomography, spectroscopy, calorimetry, gel permeation chromatography, and rheology. Most pellets were made of low-density polyethylene, but a minor proportion also consisted of high-density polyethylene. MP from inside the wreck showed no signs of degradation compared to pristine reference samples. Contrary, beached plastics exhibited changes on all structural levels, which sometimes caused fragmentation. These findings provide further evidence that plastic degradation under saltwater conditions is comparatively slow, whereas UV radiation and high temperatures on beaches are major drivers of that process. Future long-term studies should focus on underlying mechanisms and timescales of plastic degradation.
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Izar GM, Choueri RB, Martinez ST, da Rocha GO, Albergaria-Barbosa ACR. The application of the DAPSI(W)R(M) framework to the plastic pellets chain. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2022; 180:113807. [PMID: 35667257 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113807] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2022] [Revised: 04/29/2022] [Accepted: 05/26/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Single-use plastic, few global engagement and lack of policies contribute to the global challenge about plastic marine litter. This form of contamination can cause injury and death of marine wildlife. Microplastics (>5 mm) represent an important fraction of plastic litter. They include the plastic pellets that are used as raw material within plastic industry that can be unintentionally spilled into the environment during the industrial processes. In an initiative in order to facilitate the understanding and communication of plastic pellets as a social and environmental problem, we applied the Drivers-Activities-Pressures-State changes-Impacts (on Welfare)-Responses (as Measures) (DAPSI[W]R[M]) framework to plastic pellets chain. We also analyzed possible mitigating measures and their actions along the plastic pellets chain. This DAPSI(W)R(M) framework aim to show an overview of the plastic pellets chain and solutions for politicians and decision makers to help solve this socio-environmental problem that needs the engagement of all stakeholders involved.
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Affiliation(s)
- G M Izar
- Polytechnic School, Interdisciplinary Center of Energy and Environment, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Barão de Jeremoabo street, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-290 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil; Marine Geochemistry Laboratory, Institute of Geoscience, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Barão de Jeremoabo street, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil.
| | - R B Choueri
- Departament of Marine Science, Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP), Silva Jardim street, 136, 11015-020 Santos, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - S T Martinez
- Polytechnic School, Interdisciplinary Center of Energy and Environment, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Barão de Jeremoabo street, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-290 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - G O da Rocha
- Polytechnic School, Interdisciplinary Center of Energy and Environment, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Barão de Jeremoabo street, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-290 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - A C R Albergaria-Barbosa
- Marine Geochemistry Laboratory, Institute of Geoscience, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Barão de Jeremoabo street, s/n, Campus Ondina, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
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Sewwandi M, Hettithanthri O, Egodage SM, Amarathunga AAD, Vithanage M. Unprecedented marine microplastic contamination from the X-Press Pearl container vessel disaster. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 828:154374. [PMID: 35278554 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.154374] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2022] [Revised: 02/16/2022] [Accepted: 03/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
The objectives of the research was to assess the coastal pollution by plastic nurdles, pyrolitic debris, associated potential toxic elements (PTEs) concentrations and mitigatory efforts by the worst ever maritime accident of a chemical and plastic boarded container vessel; MV X-Press Pearl. Field sampling was carried out three times during May, June, and September 2021 at Sarakkuwa, Sri Lanka. Pellet pollution index (PPI) was determined to compare the degree of plastics pollution. Density separation (NaCl) followed by wet peroxide digestion for plastic separation and characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic, thermo gravimetric analysis and differential scanning calorimetric analysis. Sand and plastics samples were digested and analyzed for PTEs (Li, Mo, Cr, Pb, and Cu), are suspect to mix during disaster. Identified debris were mostly confirmed as low-density polyethylene, epoxy resins, olefin copolymers, aromatic polyamides, natural rubber, and polyethylene terephthalate. Sulfur contamination and physical erosion were observed in nurdles received in June and September. Calculated PPIs were 'high' for Sarakkuwa beach even in September with a very high pellet pollution degree (10.24 pellets per m2) compared to the control obtained from the same site in 2020 (1.6 pellets per m2). Input sand for the blue treatment facility was found as the extremely contaminated with Mo and Li with 239.71 and 1.69 mg/kg respectively other than microplastics. Blue treatment facility seemed effective in physical separation of microplastics from sand, however, it is an exhausting process due to continuous receive of microplastics from the waves and excavation of sea shore.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madushika Sewwandi
- Ecosphere Resilience Research Center, Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Nugegoda 10250, Sri Lanka
| | - Oshadi Hettithanthri
- Ecosphere Resilience Research Center, Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Nugegoda 10250, Sri Lanka
| | - S M Egodage
- Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka
| | - A A D Amarathunga
- National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency, Crow Island, Colombo 15, Sri Lanka
| | - Meththika Vithanage
- Ecosphere Resilience Research Center, Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of Sri Jayewardenepura, Nugegoda 10250, Sri Lanka; Sustainability Cluster, School of Engineering, University of Petroleum & Energy Studies, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248007, India.
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41
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Fiore L, Serranti S, Mazziotti C, Riccardi E, Benzi M, Bonifazi G. Classification and distribution of freshwater microplastics along the Italian Po river by hyperspectral imaging. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2022; 29:48588-48606. [PMID: 35195863 PMCID: PMC9252960 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-022-18501-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2021] [Accepted: 12/31/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
In this work, freshwater microplastic samples collected from four different stations along the Italian Po river were characterized in terms of abundance, distribution, category, morphological and morphometrical features, and polymer type. The correlation between microplastic category and polymer type was also evaluated. Polymer identification was carried out developing and implementing a new and effective hierarchical classification logic applied to hyperspectral images acquired in the short-wave infrared range (SWIR: 1000-2500 nm). Results showed that concentration of microplastics ranged from 1.89 to 8.22 particles/m3, the most abundant category was fragment, followed by foam, granule, pellet, and filament and the most diffused polymers were expanded polystyrene followed by polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyamide, polyethylene terephthalate and polyvinyl chloride, with some differences in polymer distribution among stations. The application of hyperspectral imaging (HSI) as a rapid and non-destructive method to classify freshwater microplastics for environmental monitoring represents a completely innovative approach in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ludovica Fiore
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Materials & Environment, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184, Rome, Italy
| | - Silvia Serranti
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Materials & Environment, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184, Rome, Italy.
| | - Cristina Mazziotti
- ARPAE, Regional Agency for Environmental Prevention and Energy of Emilia-Romagna, Oceanographic Unit Daphne - V. le Vespucci 2, 47042, Cesenatico, FC, Italy
| | - Elena Riccardi
- ARPAE, Regional Agency for Environmental Prevention and Energy of Emilia-Romagna, Oceanographic Unit Daphne - V. le Vespucci 2, 47042, Cesenatico, FC, Italy
| | - Margherita Benzi
- ARPAE, Regional Agency for Environmental Prevention and Energy of Emilia-Romagna, Oceanographic Unit Daphne - V. le Vespucci 2, 47042, Cesenatico, FC, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Bonifazi
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Materials & Environment, Sapienza University of Rome, Via Eudossiana 18, 00184, Rome, Italy
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Abstract
Microplastic debris is a persistent, ubiquitous global pollutant in oceans, estuaries, and freshwater systems. Some of the highest reported concentrations of microplastics, globally, are in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM), which is home to the majority of plastic manufacturers in the United States. A comprehensive understanding of the risk microplastics pose to wildlife is critical to the development of scientifically sound mitigation and policy initiatives. In this review, we synthesize existing knowledge of microplastic debris in the Gulf of Mexico and its effects on birds and make recommendations for further research. The current state of knowledge suggests that microplastics are widespread in the marine environment, come from known sources, and have the potential to be a major ecotoxicological concern for wild birds, especially in areas of high concentration such as the GoM. However, data for GoM birds are currently lacking regarding typical microplastic ingestion rates uptake of chemicals associated with plastics by avian tissues; and physiological, behavioral, and fitness consequences of microplastic ingestion. Filling these knowledge gaps is essential to understand the hazard microplastics pose to wild birds, and to the creation of effective policy actions and widespread mitigation measures to curb this emerging threat to wildlife.
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Plastic Interactions with Pollutants and Consequences to Aquatic Ecosystems: What We Know and What We Do Not Know. Biomolecules 2022; 12:biom12060798. [PMID: 35740921 PMCID: PMC9221377 DOI: 10.3390/biom12060798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2022] [Revised: 05/11/2022] [Accepted: 06/01/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Plastics are a group of synthetic materials made of organic polymers and some additives with special characteristics. Plastics have become part of our daily life due to their many applications and uses. However, inappropriately managed plastic waste has raised concern regarding their ecotoxicological and human health risks in the long term. Due to the non-biodegradable nature of plastics, their waste may take several thousands of years to partially degrade in natural environments. Plastic fragments/particles can be very minute in size and are mistaken easily for prey or food by aquatic organisms (e.g., invertebrates, fishes). The surface properties of plastic particles, including large surface area, functional groups, surface topography, point zero charge, influence the sorption of various contaminants, including heavy metals, oil spills, PAHs, PCBs and DDT. Despite the fact that the number of studies on the biological effects of plastic particles on biota and humans has been increasing in recent years, studies on mixtures of plastics and other chemical contaminants in the aquatic environment are still limited. This review aims to gather information about the main characteristics of plastic particles that allow different types of contaminants to adsorb on their surfaces, the consequences of this adsorption, and the interactions of plastic particles with aquatic biota. Additionally, some missing links and potential solutions are presented to boost more research on this topic and achieve a holistic view on the effects of micro- and nanoplastics to biological systems in aquatic environments. It is urgent to implement measures to deal with plastic pollution that include improving waste management, monitoring key plastic particles, their hotspots, and developing their assessment techniques, using alternative products, determining concentrations of micro- and nanoplastics and the contaminants in freshwater and marine food-species consumed by humans, applying clean-up and remediation strategies, and biodegradation strategies.
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Zhao M, Cao Y, Chen T, Li H, Tong Y, Fan W, Xie Y, Tao Y, Zhou J. Characteristics and source-pathway of microplastics in freshwater system of China: A review. CHEMOSPHERE 2022; 297:134192. [PMID: 35257703 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.134192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2021] [Revised: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
China plays a key role in global plastic production, consumption and disposal, which arouses growing concern about microplastics (MPs) contamination in Chinese freshwater systems. However, few reviews have discussed the characteristics of MP pollution in whole freshwater systems at a national scale. In this review, we summarized the characteristics, sources and transport pathways of MPs in Chinese freshwater systems including surface water and sediment. Results showed that current research mainly focused on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River and its tributaries, as well as lakes and reservoirs along the Yangtze River. Large-scale reservoirs, rivers and lakes located in densely populated areas usually showed higher abundances of MPs. The majority of MPs in Chinese surface water and sediment mainly consisted of polyethylene and polypropylene, and the most common morphologies were fibers and fragments. To identify the sources and pathways, we introduced the source-sink-pathway model, and found that sewage system, farmland and aquaculture area were the three most prevalent sinks in freshwater systems in China. The source-sink-pathway model will help to further identify the migration of MPs from sources to freshwater systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengjie Zhao
- Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China; School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China
| | - Yanxiao Cao
- Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China; School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China.
| | - Tiantian Chen
- Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China; School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China
| | - Honghu Li
- Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China; School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China
| | - Yifei Tong
- Wuhan Ecologic Environmental Carbon Technology Co., Ltd, Wuhan, 430073, China
| | - Wenbo Fan
- Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China; School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China
| | - Yuwei Xie
- Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China; School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China
| | - Ye Tao
- Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China; School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China
| | - Jingcheng Zhou
- Research Center for Environment and Health, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China; School of Information and Safety Engineering, Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, Wuhan, 430073, China.
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45
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Gündoğdu S, Ayat B, Aydoğan B, Çevik C, Karaca S. Hydrometeorological assessments of the transport of microplastic pellets in the Eastern Mediterranean. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 823:153676. [PMID: 35122859 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.153676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2021] [Revised: 01/31/2022] [Accepted: 01/31/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Microplastic pellets were sampled in May and November 2018 during one-week surveys at 13 coastal beaches in Iskenderun Bay/Turkey. Pellet pollution index (PPI) was calculated for the beaches as a tool to assess beach pollution by microplastic pellets. Hydrometeorological conditions, including wind, current, wave, surface run-off, and precipitation, were examined during 2018 to reveal the effect on the transport of microplastic pellets within the study area. Sea-surface heights, including the astronomical tide and the storm surge and the wave runup heights, were also considered in the analysis to study the extent of hydrodynamic forcing on the beach. Hydrometeorological assessments indicated that the pellet concentrations in the coastal zone are mostly related to wind-induced transport. Three major river discharges are considered as the main source of microplastic pellets effluents. A Lagrangian particle transport model was conducted to reveal the possible beaching hotspots of microplastic pellets released from these river mouths. Average microplastic pellets were calculated as 126.04 ± 54.08 items/m2 for May 2018 and 70.22 ± 18.25 items/m2 for November 2018. An overall mean PPI for May 2018 was calculated as 1.13, indicating a moderate degree of pellet pollution, and 0.56 for November 2018, indicating a low degree of pellet pollution. The simulations showed that Orontes River effluents affected the inner Iskenderun Bay coasts more than the Seyhan and Ceyhan River.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sedat Gündoğdu
- Cukurova University, Faculty of Fisheries, Department of Basic Sciences, 01330 Adana, Turkey.
| | - Berna Ayat
- Department of Civil Engineering, Yildiz Technical University, 34349, Esenler, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Burak Aydoğan
- Department of Civil Engineering, Gebze Technical University, 41400, Gebze, Kocaeli, Turkey
| | - Cem Çevik
- Cukurova University, Faculty of Fisheries, Department of Basic Sciences, 01330 Adana, Turkey
| | - Serkan Karaca
- Cukurova University, Department of Chemistry, 01330 Adana, Turkey
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De-la-Torre GE, Pizarro-Ortega CI, Dioses-Salinas DC, Castro Loayza J, Smith Sanchez J, Meza-Chuquizuta C, Espinoza-Morriberón D, Rakib MRJ, Ben-Haddad M, Dobaradaran S. Are we underestimating floating microplastic pollution? A quantitative analysis of two sampling methodologies. MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN 2022; 178:113592. [PMID: 35349867 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2022] [Revised: 03/09/2022] [Accepted: 03/19/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) are widespread in the water column of several aquatic ecosystems. Thus, the sampling methodology is considered as a basic factor influencing MPs abundance. In this baseline, a total of 67 investigations were chosen to conduct a quantitative analysis between two sampling methods: Trawl and bulk. The aim is to report a general overview of the MPs abundance and characteristic differences based on the sampling procedures and provide methodological recommendations. MPs abundance reported by bulk studies is 3500 higher than trawl studies. Furthermore, the morphological types and polymers abundances were statistically affected by the type of sampling tool. Conversely, MPs size ranges were significantly different between sampling procedures, suggesting that trawling underestimates the smaller MPs fractions. The analysis confirms that the sampling methods should be selected based on the research objectives. In this sense, it is recommended to combine both types of sampling procedures to obtain comprehensive data.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | - Carolina Meza-Chuquizuta
- Unidad de Investigación de Ecosistemas Marinos-Grupo Aves Marinas, Universidad Científica del Sur, Lima, Peru
| | - Dante Espinoza-Morriberón
- Facultad de Ingeniería Ambiental y de Recursos Naturales, Universidad Nacional del Callao (UNAC), Av. Juan Pablo II 306, Bellavista 07011, Provincia Constitucional del Callao, Peru; Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad Tecnológica del Perú (UTP), Jirón Hernán Velarde 260, Cercado de Lima, 15046 Lima, Peru
| | - Md Refat Jahan Rakib
- Department of Fisheries and Marine Science, Faculty of Science, Noakhali Science and Technology University, Noakhali, Bangladesh
| | - Mohamed Ben-Haddad
- Laboratory of Aquatic Systems, Marine and Continental Environments (AQUAMAR), Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Zohr University, Morocco
| | - Sina Dobaradaran
- Systems Environmental Health and Energy Research Center, The Persian Gulf Biomedical Sciences Research Institute, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran; Department of Environmental Health Engineering, Faculty of Health, Bushehr University of Medical Sciences, Bushehr, Iran; Instrumental Analytical Chemistry and Centre for Water and Environmental Research (ZWU), Faculty of Chemistry, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitätsstr. 5, Essen, Germany
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47
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Persson L, Carney Almroth BM, Collins CD, Cornell S, de Wit CA, Diamond ML, Fantke P, Hassellöv M, MacLeod M, Ryberg MW, Søgaard Jørgensen P, Villarrubia-Gómez P, Wang Z, Hauschild MZ. Outside the Safe Operating Space of the Planetary Boundary for Novel Entities. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2022; 56:1510-1521. [PMID: 35038861 PMCID: PMC8811958 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c04158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 239] [Impact Index Per Article: 119.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
We submit that the safe operating space of the planetary boundary of novel entities is exceeded since annual production and releases are increasing at a pace that outstrips the global capacity for assessment and monitoring. The novel entities boundary in the planetary boundaries framework refers to entities that are novel in a geological sense and that could have large-scale impacts that threaten the integrity of Earth system processes. We review the scientific literature relevant to quantifying the boundary for novel entities and highlight plastic pollution as a particular aspect of high concern. An impact pathway from production of novel entities to impacts on Earth system processes is presented. We define and apply three criteria for assessment of the suitability of control variables for the boundary: feasibility, relevance, and comprehensiveness. We propose several complementary control variables to capture the complexity of this boundary, while acknowledging major data limitations. We conclude that humanity is currently operating outside the planetary boundary based on the weight-of-evidence for several of these control variables. The increasing rate of production and releases of larger volumes and higher numbers of novel entities with diverse risk potentials exceed societies' ability to conduct safety related assessments and monitoring. We recommend taking urgent action to reduce the harm associated with exceeding the boundary by reducing the production and releases of novel entities, noting that even so, the persistence of many novel entities and/or their associated effects will continue to pose a threat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linn Persson
- Stockholm
Environment Institute, Linnégatan 87D, Box 24218, 104
51 Stockholm, Sweden
- (L.P.) Phone: +46-707176630;
| | - Bethanie M. Carney Almroth
- Department
of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University
of Gothenburg, Box 465, 405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Christopher D. Collins
- Department
of Geography and Environmental Sciences, University of Reading, PO Box 217, Reading, Berkshire, RG6 6AH, United Kingdom
| | - Sarah Cornell
- Stockholm
Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Cynthia A. de Wit
- Department
of Environmental Science, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
- (C.d.W.)
| | - Miriam L. Diamond
- Department
of Earth Sciences; and School of the Environment, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada M5S 3B1
| | - Peter Fantke
- Quantitative
Sustainability Assessment, Department of Technology, Management and
Economics, Technical University of Denmark, Produktionstorvet 424, 2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Martin Hassellöv
- Department
of Marine Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Box 100, 405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Matthew MacLeod
- Department
of Environmental Science, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Morten W. Ryberg
- Quantitative
Sustainability Assessment, Department of Technology, Management and
Economics, Technical University of Denmark, Produktionstorvet 424, 2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Peter Søgaard Jørgensen
- Stockholm
Resilience Centre, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
- Global
Economic Dynamics and the Biosphere, Royal
Swedish Academy of Sciences, Lilla Frescativägen 4A, 104
05 Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Zhanyun Wang
- Institute
of Environmental Engineering, ETH Zürich, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Michael Zwicky Hauschild
- Quantitative
Sustainability Assessment, Department of Technology, Management and
Economics, Technical University of Denmark, Produktionstorvet 424, 2800, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
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48
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Batool I, Qadir A, Levermore JM, Kelly FJ. Dynamics of airborne microplastics, appraisal and distributional behaviour in atmosphere; a review. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 806:150745. [PMID: 34656602 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.150745] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2021] [Revised: 09/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The use of plastics is common across all aspects of human life owing to its durable and versatile nature. The generation and utilization of plastics are directly related to the anthropogenic activities. The extensive use of plastics and adoption of inappropriate waste-management frameworks has resulted in their release into the environment, where they may persist. Different environmental factors, such as, photochemical, thermo-oxidation, and biological degradation, can lead to the degradation of plastics into micro- (MPs) and nano-plastics (NPs). The behaviour and concentration of MPs in the terrestrial environment can depend on their size, density, and local atmospheric conditions. Microplastics and nanoplastics may enter the food web, carrying various organic pollutants, which bio-accumulate at different trophic levels, prompting organism health concerns. Microplastics being airborne identifies as new exposure route. Dietary and airborne exposure to MPs has led researchers to stress the importance of evaluating their toxicological potential. The primary goal of this paper is to explore the environmental fate of MPs from sources to sink in the terrestrial environment, as well as detail their potential impacts on human health. Additionally, this review article focuses on the presence of airborne microplastics, detailed sample pre-processing methods, and outlines analytical methods for their characterization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iffat Batool
- College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.
| | - Abdul Qadir
- College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.
| | - Joseph M Levermore
- School of Public Health, Imperial College London, 10th Floor, Michael Uren Building, White City Campus, 80 Wood Lane, London W12 0BZ, UK
| | - Frank J Kelly
- School of Public Health, Imperial College London, 10th Floor, Michael Uren Building, White City Campus, 80 Wood Lane, London W12 0BZ, UK
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49
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Drummond JD, Schneidewind U, Li A, Hoellein TJ, Krause S, Packman AI. Microplastic accumulation in riverbed sediment via hyporheic exchange from headwaters to mainstems. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabi9305. [PMID: 35020429 PMCID: PMC8754297 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abi9305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
In rivers, small and lightweight microplastics are transported downstream, but they are also found frequently in riverbed sediment, demonstrating long-term retention. To better understand microplastic dynamics in global rivers from headwaters to mainstems, we developed a model that includes hyporheic exchange processes, i.e., transport between surface water and riverbed sediment, where microplastic retention is facilitated. Our simulations indicate that the longest microplastic residence times occur in headwaters, the most abundant stream classification. In headwaters, residence times averaged 5 hours/km but increased to 7 years/km during low-flow conditions. Long-term accumulation for all stream classifications averaged ~5% of microplastic inputs per river kilometer. Our estimates isolated the impact of hyporheic exchange processes, which are known to influence dynamics of naturally occurring particles in streams, but rarely applied to microplastics. The identified mechanisms and time scales for small and lightweight microplastic accumulation in riverbed sediment reveal that these often-unaccounted components are likely a pollution legacy that is crucial to include in global assessments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer D. Drummond
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
- Corresponding author.
| | - Uwe Schneidewind
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
| | - Angang Li
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
| | | | - Stefan Krause
- School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
- LEHNA–Laboratoire d’ecologie des hydrosystemes naturels et anthropises, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Aaron I. Packman
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA
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50
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Huber M, Archodoulaki VM, Pomakhina E, Pukánszky B, Zinöcker E, Gahleitner M. Environmental degradation and formation of secondary microplastics from packaging material: A polypropylene film case study. Polym Degrad Stab 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.polymdegradstab.2021.109794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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