Fragmented marine plastics as the prevalent litter type on a small island beach in the Adriatic.
Mar Pollut Bull
; 203: 116467, 2024 Jun.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38744047
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.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Plásticos
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Praias
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Poluentes Químicos da Água
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Monitoramento Ambiental
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Microplásticos
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Mar Pollut Bull
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article