Overview of the biological effects of lost and discarded plastic debris in the marine environment

A global review of marine turtle entanglement in anthropogenic debris: a baseline for further action

“…Entanglement in plastic debris is recognised as a major risk for many marine species (Laist 1987, Vegter et al 2014). This has become sufficiently high profile that the European Union's Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) Technical Subgroup on Marine Litter has announced that it will develop a dedicated monitoring protocol for its next report (MSFD GES Technical Subgroup on Marine Litter 2011).…”

Neustonic microplastic and zooplankton in the North Western Mediterranean Sea

“…Moreover, it is probable that a wide range of marine organisms are affected by plastic wastes in the sea. Macrodebris ingestion and entanglement are well documented in sea birds, mammals and turtles and more recently in fishes and invertebrates (e.g., Laist, 1987Laist, , 1997Gramentz, 1988;Weisskopf, 1988;Slip et al, 1990;Moser and Lee, 1992;Shaw and Day, 1994;Goldberg, 1997;Robards et al, 1995;Derraik, 2002;Thompson et al, 2004;Ryan et al, 2009;Boerger et al, 2010;Murray and Cowie, 2011).…”

Marine plastic litter as an artificial hard bottom fouling ground

“…Apart from the fact that plastic objects are spoiling beaches in an aesthetic sense {Dixon & Cooke, 1977), they also constitute a hazard to man and wildhfe {Anonymous, 1975;Laist, 1987). This prehminary survey shows that plastic foils are also, apparently, an acceptable settling ground for a variety of marine benthic organisms.…”

“…Plastics constituted I 75 % of the items found during a survey of the garbage on Helgoland beaches (Vauk & Schrey, 1987). This accumulation of plastic debris poses increasingly significant threats to marine mammals, seabirds, turtles, fish and crustaceans (Anonymous, 1975;Laist, 1987). The influence of garbage on the biocenoses in coastal areas and the sea-bottom has been evaluated only by Klausewitz (1984).…”