What remains on the beach after tourists leave? The case of Abais beach (Sergipe, Brazil)

The study evaluated the characteristics of marine litter disposed of by tourists on the Abais beach (state of Sergipe, Brazil), during the dry (December/2017, January/2018, and February/2018) and rainy (May/2018, June/2018, and July/2018) months. Litter was collected on a Sunday of each month after the tourists left. The values of abundance (9.71 +/- 2.03 items/m), weight (21.07 +/- 16.04 g/m), volume (0.58 +/- 0.25 L/m), richness (33 litter groups) and plastic percentage (75.07 +/- 4.81%) were higher in the dry months compared to the rainy ones (2.01 +/- 2.80 items/m; 5.08 +/- 6.01 g/m; 0.17 +/- 0.16 L/m; 22 litter groups; and 68.62 +/- 5.98% of plastic, respectively). Considering the tourist importance of the Abais beach to Sergipe state, it is crucial to develop effective cleaning actions, environmental awareness campaigns for tourists, residents and traders, as well as to establish restrictive public legal instruments to promote reduction, reuse, and recycling of the marine litter.

Automated summary

The study found that the amount, weight, volume, richness, and plastic content of marine litter disposed of by tourists on Abais beach were higher during the dry months compared to the rainy months.