A Plethora of Microplastic Pollution Studies: The Need for a Forensic Approach

Abstract

The Mediterranean Sea has recently been described as one of the most affected marine environments with regards to microplastics. Existing data relating to microplastics on Mediterranean surface waters have shown not only an evident heterogeneous distribution, but also marked geographical differences between the Mediterranean subregions. To date, standardized methodologies for the sampling and analysis of microplastics are still lacking, which therefore hinders the comparison of the reported data. This review summarizes the currently used methodologies for sampling and identifying microplastics in surface water, with the intention of contributing to establishing standardized methodologies. In addition, the importance of a forensic approach for the development of more complete and robust strategies and protocols to assess the extent of the phenomenon of microplastics is highlighted.