Occurrence, distribution and provenance of micro plastics: A large scale quantitative analysis of beach sediments from southeastern coast of South Africa

Vetrimurugan, E.; Jonathan, M.P.; Sarkar, Santosh Kumar; Rodríguez-González, Francisco; Roy, Priyadarsi D.; Velumani, S.; Sakthi, J.S.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141103

Cited by 47 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 99 publications

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“…They found a MP density between 688.9 ± 348.2 MP/m 2 sediment and 3308 ± 1449 MP/m 2 [125]. Five years later, Vetrimurugan et al published on MP presence at nine southeastern South African touristic beaches along the KwaZulu-Natal coast and found the highest density of MPs (506 MP/30 g sediment) in beach sediments in the Durban area [126]. The majority of MP were found to be microfibers, and in 2016-2017, S. De Villiers looked at the microfiber concentration in South African beach sediments, both along the Indian Ocean coastline and along the South Atlantic coastline and found 41 ± 23 F/dm 3 for the South Coast in Spring 2017, 97 ± 122 F/dm 3 for the South-East coast and 127 ± 96 F/dm 3 for the East coast [122].…”

Section: Abundance Of Plastic Debris and Specifically Microplastic In...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Microplastic in the Marine Environment of the Indian Ocean

Thiemann¹

2023

JEP

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Microplastic has been found in all major waterbodies in the world. Many examples of ingestion of microplastic by marine organisms have been reported. This presence of microplastic in marine organisms gives it the possibility to penetrate the human food chain by increasing the chance of microplastic in seafood targeted for human consumption. Although it is known that parts of the Indian Ocean suffer from significant plastic pollution, much of the systematic research on the microplastic abundance in different regions of the Indian Ocean stems only from the last five years. This manuscript reviews the available literature of 2015-2022 on the presence of microplastics in commercially important fish species in the Indian Ocean. The literature data on microplastic content on beaches, in subtidal sediment, in the sediment from the ocean floor, and in surface water of different regions of the Indian Ocean is reviewed, also.

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Section: Abundance Of Plastic Debris and Specifically Microplastic In...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Microplastic in the Marine Environment of the Indian Ocean

Thiemann¹

2023

JEP

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“…by 430000 tons in Europe and 300000 tons in North America [12]. Weathered by solar ultraviolet radiation and increased oxygen availability and temperature, MPs migrate through the soil vertically and horizontally [26]. They spread further through the actions of springtails and earthworms as well.…”

Section: Microplastics In Agricultural Ecosystemsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Accumulation of Microplastics in Agroecosystems and Its Effects on Terrestrial Plants: A Short Review

Islam

Mondal

Angon

et al. 2023

Curr. Appl. Sci. Technol.

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Microplastics are currently a major global threat as they enter the ecosystem in large quantities daily and are able to persist in the environment for a long period of time. Current research focuses mainly on aquatic and related ecosystems; however, little information is available on the sources, possible accumulation, and pathways of microplastics in agroecosystems. It was previously thought that plastic particles could not be taken up or accumulate in plant bodies, but with modern technology, it has been observed that plastic particles are able to penetrate plants at the micro and nanoscales through transpiration pull forces, and in some cases through the leaves with foliar application. The purpose of the study was to identify potential sources of microplastics, their ways of entry into agroecosystems as well as into plants, and the effects of microplastics on the physiological processes of plants. We highlighted the harmful effects of these pollutants on agricultural ecosystems. Microplastics causes pore space blockages on root surfaces and oxidative damage. Moreover, they inhibit nutrient and water uptake, decrease germination capability, and have negative effects on product quality.

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“…Human population density has been among the key drivers for microplastic contamination (Corcoran et al, 2020;Vermeiren et al, 2021). Van Cauwenberghe et al's (2015) review article highlighted that microplastics are more often abundant in densely populated areas, while high anthropogenic inputs of microplastics were observed through rivers, coastal tourism, and harbor activities by Vetrimurugan et al (2020). However, Claessens et al (2011) could not establish a clear link between local human activities and microplastic concentrations; however, elevated concentrations appeared to be linked to harbor sediments.…”

Section: Links Between Microplastic Concentration and Coastal Suitabi...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The baseline for micro- and mesoplastic pollution in open Baltic Sea and Gulf of Riga beach

Dimante-Deimantovica,

Bebrite,

Skudra

et al. 2023

Front. Mar. Sci.

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Microplastic pollution has become widespread, occurring even in areas with low anthropogenic impacts, small human populations, and low tourism intensity. Marine beach sand represents the interface between inland and marine environments and acts like a fingerprint of all the processes happening within the onshore catchment and in the sea, driven by marine hydrodynamic processes. An extensive dataset is required from different coastal ecosystems to understand microplastic pollution. Here, we set the baseline for micro- and mesoplastic pollution distribution in 24 beaches along the Latvian coastline (Northern Europe, Baltic states), filling the existing knowledge gap and contributing to the global understanding of microplastic particles presence, transport, and the processes governing its dynamics. We also highlight citizen science as a fundamental tool to support data collection and raise awareness about microplastic pollution, as samples were collected by up to 250 volunteers during organized campaigns. To improve the understanding of the driving forces responsible for plastic pollution distribution along beaches, we analyzed sand granulometry, sample location, hydrodynamic variables (waves and currents), and tourism/leisure intensity. Our results demonstrate that the semi-closed Gulf of Riga beach environment contains fewer micro- and mesoplastic particles (0.10 particles/kg dry sand) compared to the open Baltic Sea (0.16 particles/kg dry sand). For microplastic size fraction particularly, a separate cluster can be distinguished showing a higher microplastic concentration and greater presence of fibers associated with coarser beach sand in the open Baltic Sea and eastern part of the Gulf of Riga. Recreational activity was not observed to have any statistically significant effect on microplastic distribution. We have concluded that hydrodynamics is an important factor for microplastics distribution and accumulation, but the impacts are of local scale, and results vary significantly among existing studies.

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Occurrence, distribution and provenance of micro plastics: A large scale quantitative analysis of beach sediments from southeastern coast of South Africa

Cited by 47 publications

References 99 publications

Microplastic in the Marine Environment of the Indian Ocean

Microplastic in the Marine Environment of the Indian Ocean

Accumulation of Microplastics in Agroecosystems and Its Effects on Terrestrial Plants: A Short Review

The baseline for micro- and mesoplastic pollution in open Baltic Sea and Gulf of Riga beach

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