Status of Microplastic Pollution in Aquatic Ecosystem with a Case Study on Cherating River, Malaysia

Abstract

Microplastics are emerging contaminants owing to their potential to adsorb and release pollutants from the environment, transferring these pollutants to the food web. Most marine microplastics come from the terrestrial environment, mainly from inland freshwaters that are direct receivers of runoff from urban, industrial, and agricultural areas. The present study investigated the occurrence of microplastics in surface water samples taken from the Cherating river and the Cherating mangrove, Pahang along with a review of recent studies on microplastics abundance in aquatic ecosystems. Three sampling sites were established (two sites along the river and one site in a mangrove in the downstream of the river). In the up- and midstream regions, the river passes by residential, fishery and tourism areas, while the mangrove is located close to Cherating Beach. The highest microplastics abundance was discovered in the midstream region, with an average abundance 0.0070 ± 0.0033 particles/m3, followed by the mangrove (0.0051 ± 0.0053 particles/m3). Fragments with a size of 0.5 to 1.0 mm and white-colored microplastics were prevalent. The findings are similar to those from other microplastic studies (e.g. in Aveiro and Lisbon, Portugal; New England, USA; Kingston Harbour, Jamaica), but lower than microplastics studies in Asia (e.g. Yangtze river estuary and Hangjiang river, China). Overall, the findings provide background information on microplastics pollution in aquatic ecosystems.

Identifikasi Karakteristik Fisik Mikroplastik di Sungai Kalimas, Surabaya, Jawa Timur

“…Rata-rata konsentrasi mikroplastik pada Sungai Kalimas sebesar 0.07 item/m 3 . Variasi konsentrasi mikroplastik di antara lokasi pengambilan sampel mungkin disebabkan oleh perbedaan dampak antropogenik, sumber input mikroplastik, serta pengaruh faktor alam seperti arus air, angin, dan river transport 21 . Selain itu, keberadaan mikroplastik di Sungai Kalimas disebabkan oleh tingginya timbulan sampah.…”

Development of Microplastic Research in ASEAN

“…Other influences besides population level, high abundance of microplastics come from intense fishing and tourism activities from the middle and downstream [14] this not only happen in river tourism but also happen to the marine tourism sector. Microplastics were significantly more abundant on densely populated beaches than pristine ones, where most microplastics in the form of foam particles and fragments dominated densely populated coastal areas [15].…”

Microplastics Contamination in a High Population Density Area of the Chao Phraya River, Bangkok

“…The water samples were directly sieved through stainless steel sieves with mesh sizes of 5.0, 1.0, 0.5, and 0.05 mm to separate the solids into different sizes. Sodium iodide solution with a density of 1.5 g/cm 3 was used to float the MPs in the sample matrix before sieving. The solids that remained on the sieves were treated with hydrogen peroxide (30%) and an iron (II) catalyst to remove organic compounds that could affect the visual sorting of the MPs under a microscope.…”

“…The samples were dried in an oven at 60 C and the total solids were determined. Due to the complexity of the sediment samples, plastic debris was extracted from the sediment by flotation in NaI solution with a density of 1.5 g/cm 3 . The dried sediment was mixed with 200 mL of the NaI solution in a beaker for 5 min by a magnetic stirrer.…”

“…The term MPs has been defined differently by various researchers. However, most researchers define MPs as plastic particles that are smaller than 5 mm [1][2][3][4]. MPs can be generated from the breakdown of larger plastics by UV degradation, wind impact, or wave impact.…”