The ocean’s ultimate trashcan: Hadal trenches as major depositories for plastic pollution

Peng, Guyu; Bellerby, R.; Song, Zhangyu; Sun, Xuerong; Li, Daoji

doi:10.1016/j.watres.2019.115121

Cited by 181 publications

(66 citation statements)

References 65 publications

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“…The oceans are the ultimate sink for chemical pollutants, and persistent pollutants that enter the seas from landbased sources will stay in the oceans for years and even centuries [201]. Concentrations of contaminants vary in different parts of the oceans.…”

Section: Pollutantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Health and Ocean Pollution

Landrigan

Stegeman

Fleming

et al. 2020

Annals of Global Health

396

170

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Methods: Topic-focused reviews that examine the effects of ocean pollution on human health, identify gaps in knowledge, project future trends, and offer evidence-based guidance for effective intervention. Environmental Findings: Pollution of the oceans is widespread, worsening, and in most countries poorly controlled. It is a complex mixture of toxic metals, plastics, manufactured chemicals, petroleum, urban and industrial wastes, pesticides, fertilizers, pharmaceutical chemicals, agricultural runoff, and sewage. More than 80% arises from land-based sources. It reaches the oceans through rivers, runoff, atmospheric deposition and direct discharges. It is often heaviest near the coasts and most highly concentrated along the coasts of low-and middle-income countries. Plastic is a rapidly increasing and highly visible component of ocean pollution, and an estimated 10 million metric tons of plastic waste enter the seas each year. Mercury is the metal pollutant of greatest concern in the oceans; it is released from two main sources-coal combustion and small-scale gold mining. Global spread of industrialized agriculture with increasing use of chemical fertilizer leads to extension of Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) to previously unaffected regions. Chemical pollutants are ubiquitous and contaminate seas and marine organisms from the high Arctic to the abyssal depths. Ecosystem Findings: Ocean pollution has multiple negative impacts on marine ecosystems, and these impacts are exacerbated by global climate change. Petroleum-based pollutants reduce photosynthesis in marine microorganisms that generate oxygen. Increasing absorption of carbon dioxide into the seas causes ocean acidification, which destroys coral reefs, impairs shellfish development, dissolves calcium-containing microorganisms at the base of the marine food web, and increases the toxicity of some pollutants. Plastic pollution threatens marine mammals, fish, and seabirds and accumulates in large mid-ocean gyres. It breaks down into microplastic and nanoplastic particles containing multiple manufactured chemicals that can enter the tissues of marine organisms, including species consumed by humans. Industrial releases, runoff, and sewage increase frequency and severity of HABs, bacterial pollution, and anti-microbial resistance. Pollution and sea surface warming are triggering poleward migration of dangerous pathogens such as the Vibrio species. Industrial discharges, pharmaceutical wastes, pesticides, and sewage contribute to global declines in fish stocks. Human Health Findings: Methylmercury and PCBs are the ocean pollutants whose human health effects are best understood. Exposures of infants in utero to these pollutants through maternal consumption of contaminated seafood can damage developing brains, reduce IQ and increase children's risks for autism, ADHD and learning disorders. Adult exposures to methylmercury increase risks for cardiovascular disease and dementia. Manufactured chemicals-phthalates, bisphenol A, flame retardants, and perfluorinated chemicals...

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Section: Pollutantsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Human Health and Ocean Pollution

Landrigan

Stegeman

Fleming

et al. 2020

Annals of Global Health

396

170

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…MPs have been found across all oceans, from the surface to deep sea trenches (Peng et al, 2020). In sediments MPs are accumulating at rates that may leave a stratigraphic signal of the Anthropocene in the geological record (Zalasiewicz et al, 2016).…”

Section: Microplasticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Particulate Organic Carbon Deconstructed: Molecular and Chemical Composition of Particulate Organic Carbon in the Ocean

Kharbush

Mooy

et al. 2020

Front. Mar. Sci.

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The dynamics of the particulate organic carbon (POC) pool in the ocean are central to the marine carbon cycle. POC is the link between surface primary production, the deep ocean, and sediments. The rate at which POC is degraded in the dark ocean can impact atmospheric CO 2 concentration. Therefore, a central focus of marine organic geochemistry studies is to improve our understanding of POC distribution, composition, and cycling. The last few decades have seen improvements in analytical techniques that have greatly expanded what we can measure, both in terms of organic compound structural diversity and isotopic composition, and complementary molecular omics studies. Here we provide a brief overview of the autochthonous, allochthonous, and anthropogenic components comprising POC in the ocean. In addition, we highlight key needs for future research that will enable us to more effectively connect diverse data sources and link the identity and structural diversity of POC to its sources and transformation processes.

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“…It occurs in all size ranges from commercial shipping containers to plastic bottles, cigarettes butts, industrial pellets, all the way down to particles in nanometer size. Plastic as the vast majority of anthropogenic litter (Reisser et al, 2013) is found on the surface of the open sea (Law et al, 2010;Cozar et al, 2014;Eriksen et al, 2014), in the deep sea (Peng et al, 2020), in the Arctic (Tekman et al, 2017), and on beaches worldwide (UNEP, 2015;Matsuguma et al, 2017). To protect the marine environment across Europe, the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) was adopted, to achieve a 'Good Environmental Status' (GES) of European waters through the use of 11 descriptors by 2020 (MSFD, 2008/56/EC).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marine Litter Pollution in Baltic Sea Beaches – Application of the Sand Rake Method

Haseler

Balčiūnas

Hauk

et al. 2020

Front. Environ. Sci.

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Most marine litter monitoring methods used on beaches focus on macro-litter (>25 mm) only and show shortcomings regarding smaller litter classes (<25 mm), especially at Baltic Sea beaches. Therefore, we used a sand rake method developed for large micro- (2–5 mm), and meso- (5–25 mm) litter to quantify the overall pollution status of Baltic Sea beaches and to test if the method is useful in terms of the requirements of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). Between July 2017 and October 2019, 197 sand rake method surveys were carried out at 35 regions around the Baltic Sea. In total, 9345 litter pieces were found on an area of 10,271 m2 of which 69.9% were 2–25 mm in size. Artificial polymers (4921 litter pieces) were predominant (mean 52.7% ± 13.3). Abundance of litter was 0.91 pieces/m2 ± 1.50 (median 0.40 pieces/m2). The most common litter were industrial pellets (19.8%), non-identifiable plastic pieces 2–25 mm (17.3%), cigarette butts (15.3%), and paraffin (11.9%). At 15 surveys at the German North Sea island of Sylt the litter abundance ranged from 0.45 pieces/m2 (median) to 0.59 pieces/m2 ± 0.37 (mean). Here, 69.2% of the litter was 2–25 mm in size and paraffin was predominant (69.2%). Beaches show a high pollution level with large micro- and meso-litter (2–25 mm) and our data can serve as a Baltic-wide pollution baseline. In contrast to the naked eye OSPAR method for macro-litter, the sand rake method is generally applicable on all sandy beaches, both urban and remote. This method also allows for the provision of a full spatial pollution pattern and can serve for assessing the effectiveness of marine litter mitigation measures.

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The ocean’s ultimate trashcan: Hadal trenches as major depositories for plastic pollution

Cited by 181 publications

References 65 publications

Human Health and Ocean Pollution

Human Health and Ocean Pollution

Particulate Organic Carbon Deconstructed: Molecular and Chemical Composition of Particulate Organic Carbon in the Ocean

Marine Litter Pollution in Baltic Sea Beaches – Application of the Sand Rake Method

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