Plastic debris in the open ocean
Andrés Cózar,Fidel Echevarría,J. Ignacio González-Gordillo,Xabier Irigoien,Bárbara Úbeda,Santiago Hernández-León,Alvaro T. Palma,Sandra Navarro,Juan García-de-Lomas,Andrea Ruiz,María L. Fernández-de-Puelles,Carlos M. Duarte +11 more
TLDR
Using data from the Malaspina 2010 circumnavigation, regional surveys, and previously published reports, this work shows a worldwide distribution of plastic on the surface of the open ocean, mostly accumulating in the convergence zones of each of the five subtropical gyres with comparable density.Abstract:
There is a rising concern regarding the accumulation of floating plastic debris in the open ocean. However, the magnitude and the fate of this pollution are still open questions. Using data from the Malaspina 2010 circumnavigation, regional surveys, and previously published reports, we show a worldwide distribution of plastic on the surface of the open ocean, mostly accumulating in the convergence zones of each of the five subtropical gyres with comparable density. However, the global load of plastic on the open ocean surface was estimated to be on the order of tens of thousands of tons, far less than expected. Our observations of the size distribution of floating plastic debris point at important size-selective sinks removing millimeter-sized fragments of floating plastic on a large scale. This sink may involve a combination of fast nano-fragmentation of the microplastic into particles of microns or smaller, their transference to the ocean interior by food webs and ballasting processes, and processes yet to be discovered. Resolving the fate of the missing plastic debris is of fundamental importance to determine the nature and significance of the impacts of plastic pollution in the ocean.read more
Citations
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Analysis and Prevention of Microplastics Pollution in Water: Current Perspectives and Future Directions.
TL;DR: How engineering and biotechnological tools, such as advanced water treatments, would help to control, reduce, or even eliminate MP pollution in the near future is outlined.
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Microfibers generated from the laundering of cotton, rayon and polyester based fabrics and their aquatic biodegradation
Marielis C. Zambrano,Joel J. Pawlak,Jesse Daystar,Mary Ankeny,Jay J. Cheng,Richard A. Venditti +5 more
TL;DR: Using well-controlled aquatic biodegradation experiments it was shown that cotton and rayon microfibers are expected to degrade in natural aquatic aerobic environments whereas polyester microf fibers areexpected to persist in the environment for long periods of time.
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Questions of size and numbers in environmental research on microplastics: methodological and conceptual aspects
TL;DR: In this article, a critical reading of 55 studies containing quantitative microplastic data in waters and sediments is presented, based on existing knowledge in the field of natural colloid studies.
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Marine plastic debris emits a keystone infochemical for olfactory foraging seabirds
TL;DR: It is demonstrated experimentally that marine-seasoned microplastics produce a dimethyl sulfide (DMS) signature that is also a keystone odorant for natural trophic interactions, suggesting that plastic debris emits the scent of a marine infochemical, creating an olfactory trap for susceptible marine wildlife.
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Mangrove forests as traps for marine litter
TL;DR: It is shown that pneumatophores act as a sieve retaining large plastic objects, leading to higher plastic mass estimates in mangroves compared to those of beaches previously surveyed in the Red Sea, suggesting ocean-based activities combined with surface currents as major drivers of litter in this basin.
References
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