Synthetic plastic polymers are now significant marine contaminants, especially microplastic particles <5 mm (MPs) that enter the ocean through rivers, sewage treatment discharges and from urban runoff. Given accelerating production of plastic products, marine plastic pollution is expected to grow exponentially. Therefore, quantitative monitoring of marine MPs is critical for understanding sources, spatiotemporal distributions, possible sinks, and risks to marine organisms. To better understand MP particle composition and distributions across diverse marine environments, samples collected off the Northeastern coast of Venezuela (NECV), in the Gulf Stream Current (GSC), and Arctic Ocean (AO), were analyzed by Raman microspectroscopy. We catalogued MP particles from 1 to 300 µm, an important size fraction notably absent from most published MP surveys. MP particles were found in all samples, except those from 300 µm prefilters. MPs were significantly more abundant in NECV samples (2.1±0.5 x 105 MP L-1) than in GSC (1.1±0.5 x105 MP L-1) and AO (0.5±0.1 x105 MP L-1) samples. The most abundant polymers were polystyrene, polypropylene, and polyethylene terephthalate in NECV, GSC, and AO samples, respectively. In Niskin bottle samples from all sites, MP particle size ranged from 1 to 43 µm ESD, with 60% being less than 5 µm. Our results highlight: (1) the numerical importance of small MP particles in the ocean, (2) the potential risk for small suspension feeders, and (3) the shortcomings of MP surveys based on 300+ µm net tow collections.
Primary Presenter: Gordon Taylor, Stony Brook University (gordon.taylor@stonybrook.edu)
Authors:
Luis Medina Faull, Stony Brook University (luis.medina@stonybrook.edu)
Tatiana Zaliznyak, Stony Brook University (tatiana.zaliznyak@stonybrook.edu)
Gordon Taylor, Stony Brook University (gordon.taylor@stonybrook.edu)
FROM THE CARIBBEAN TO THE ARCTIC, MICROPLASTICS ARE PERVASIVE THROUGHOUT THE OCEAN
Category
Scientific Sessions > SS024 Down the Drain and Down the River: The Transport, Fate and Impact of Micro- and Nanoplastic on Their Way to the Oceans
Description
Time: 06:30 PM
Date: 7/6/2023
Room: Mezzanine