Plastic ingestion by seabirds in the circumpolar Arctic: a review

Baak, Julia E.; Linnebjerg, Jannie Fries; Barry, Tom; Gavrilo, Maria; Mallory, Mark L.; Price, Courtney; Provencher, Jennifer F.

doi:10.1139/er-2020-0029

Cited by 59 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 94 publications

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“…To date, much of the research into plastic pollution in the CAA has focused on plastic ingested by seabirds (Amélineau et al, 2016;Poon et al, 2017;Avery-Gomm et al, 2018;Baak et al, 2020), however, two recent publications (Huntington et al, 2020;Ross et al, 2021) examine microplastic pollution in relation to the lower trophic levels of the CAA and in the sub-surface waters, respectively. Huntington et al (2020), specifically focused on the CAA investigating microplastics in different matrices, finding that 90% of both surface water samples and zooplankton contained microplastics, averaging 0.07 ± 0.08 particles/L.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Remote, but Not Isolated—Microplastics in the Sub-surface Waters of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago

et al. 2021

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As the remote Canadian Arctic Archipelago (CAA) becomes increasingly connected to the rest of the world, there is an impetus to monitor the possible impact of this connectivity. The potential for increases in localised sources of plastic pollution resulting from the increasing navigability of the remote north has yet to be explored. Here we investigate microplastic samples which were collected aboard the Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) Amundsen in the summer of 2018 using the underway pump and a filtration system with Fourier transform infrared analysis. We investigate the character, abundance, and distribution of microplastic particles and fibres in the sub-surface waters across the Canadian Arctic and add to the limited dataset on plastic pollution in this region. We find that there are low concentrations of microplastics ranging from 0 to 0.282 n L–1 (average 0.031 ± 0.017 n L–1), comprising 71% polyester and acrylics. We investigate the size distribution of retained particles and fibres on three different filter mesh sizes connected to the underway pump (300, 100, and 50 μm) and find that a 300 μm mesh and a 100 μm mesh retain only 6 and 56%, respectively, of the total particles and fibres. We explore the role of shipping as a potential source of textile fibres and we suggest that future monitoring of plastics in the Canadian Arctic should use the current shipping fleet to monitor its own plastic footprint, utilising the underway pump and mesh sizes < 100 μm.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Remote, but Not Isolated—Microplastics in the Sub-surface Waters of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago

et al. 2021

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“…Thus, water sampling often uses nets of 300 µm mesh size. Seabirds, specifically those that feed in the open ocean, can be used to study litter particles between 1 and 25 mm (Baak et al 2020). Shoreline surveys focus mostly on litter, and largely on pieces greater than 25 mm (Strand and Murphy In review).…”

Section: Priority 1 Monitoring Compartment Recommendations For the Pa...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This will allow for future spatial trend monitoring across large scale areas that experience similar oceanographic conditions. (Braune et al 2014;Houde et al 2020), and since 2007 stomach samples from the same individuals collected for contaminants research have also been examined for microplastics (Baak et al 2020;Bourdages et al 2020).…”

Section: Implementation Of the Monitoring Planmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…These reports called for more work to address the transport, pathways, fate, and effects of plastic litter, and in particular to address microplastics in the Arctic marine environment. Although plastic pollution has become an issue of growing concern, leading to many local, regional, and international initiatives aiming to better understand and address it, limited information exists on the extent and development of plastic pollution in the Arctic (Halsband and Herzke 2019;Baak et al 2020;Tirelli et al 2020;Collard and Ask 2021). Arctic ecosystems are currently undergoing rapid changes and experiencing multiple environmental stressors (Dietz et al 2019;Jorgensen et al 2019;Orr et al 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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An ecosystem-scale litter and microplastics monitoring plan under the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP)

et al. 2022

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Lack of knowledge on levels and trends of litter and microplastic in the Arctic, is limiting our understanding of the sources, transport, fate and effects is hampering global activities aimed at reducing litter and microplastic in the environment. To obtain a holistic view to managing litter and microplastics in the Arctic, we considered the current state of knowledge and methods for litter and microplastics monitoring in eleven environmental compartments representing the marine, freshwater, terrestrial and atmospheric environments. Based on available harmonized methods, and existing data in the Arctic, we recommend prioritization of implementing litter and microplastics monitoring in the Arctic in four Priority 1 compartments - water, aquatic sediments, shorelines and seabirds. One or several of these compartments should be monitored to provide benchmark data for litter and microplastics in the Arctic and, in the future, data on spatial and temporal trends. For the other environmental compartments, methods should be refined for future sources and surveillance monitoring, as well as monitoring of effects. Implementation of the monitoring activities should include community-based local components where possible. While organized as national and regional programs, monitoring of litter and microplastics in the Arctic should be coordinated, with a view to future pan-Arctic assessments.

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“…Plastic material enters the Arctic through long-range transport and local sources (Halsband and Herzke, 2019;Huserbråten et al, 2022;Liboiron et al, 2021), where the latter may dominate according to recent models (Strand et al, 2021). Plastic pollution (macroplastic > 5mm > microplastic) has been identified in a variety of organisms spanning multiple trophic levels including marine mammals (Moore et al, 2020), seabirds (Baak et al, 2020), fish (Kühn et al, 2018;Moore et al, 2022), and invertebrates (Bellasi et al, 2020). The presence of plastic and microplastic (MP) within Arctic water bodies (Martin et al, 2022) raises concerns for the exposure of Arctic fishes to this environmental contaminant, and the effects this might have.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Current efforts on microplastic monitoring in Arctic fish and how to proceed

et al. 2023

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In this review, we investigated published data on the occurrence of microplastic in Arctic fish, and the suitability of the data and species for risk assessment and monitoring. As of 11.11.2021, we found nine studies in the peer-reviewed literature, one thesis and one report, confirming the occurrence of microplastic in fishes from multiple Arctic regions. The studies varied in methodology, detection and quantification limitations, reported categories of size, shape, and chemical identity. All these factors influence the numbers of microplastic reported, thus limiting comparability and hindering integrative analysis. The physiological impacts of the reported microplastic contamination cannot be determined, as all studies targeted stomach/intestine contents and did not use methods with limits of detection low enough to determine particle translocation from the intestine to other organs, tissues or body fluids within the fish. Furthermore, there is a fundamental lack of understanding the transfer and the effects of plastic additives to Arctic fishes. In addition to discussing methodological challenges and knowledge gaps, we consider ecosystem needs, commercial interests, Indigenous people’s subsistence, food safety and food sovereignty concerns, and developed a framework to harmonize and facilitate pan-Arctic microplastic monitoring.

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Plastic ingestion by seabirds in the circumpolar Arctic: a review

Cited by 59 publications

References 94 publications

Remote, but Not Isolated—Microplastics in the Sub-surface Waters of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago

Remote, but Not Isolated—Microplastics in the Sub-surface Waters of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago

An ecosystem-scale litter and microplastics monitoring plan under the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP)

Current efforts on microplastic monitoring in Arctic fish and how to proceed

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