Journal
MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN
Volume 113, Issue 1-2, Pages 530-535Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.08.053
Keywords
Microplastics; Tourist; Beach sediment; Scanning electron microscope; Huatulco Bay; Mexico
Funding
- SIP-IPN Project [20131781]
- IPN, Mexico
- CONACyT, Mexico
- CONACyT-SENER project [263043]
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The presence and impacts of plastic marine debris (PMD) have been documented in the oceans worldwide, and they deserve special attention. This study is the first to report the presence of microplastics in tourist beaches located in Huatulco Bay, southern Mexico. A total of 70 beach sediment samples (for 2 distinct seasons) were collected from Huatulco Bay in April 2013 and December 2014. The samples were subsequently extracted by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to identify the fibrous microplastics (diameter < 5 mm). The maximum number of fibrous materials was found in April 2013 and December 2014 in the Rincon Sabroso beach (48/30 g sediment) and the Cuatunalco beach (69/30 g sediment), respectively. Overall, a high amount of microplastics is present in the Conejos, Tangolunda, Santa Cruz, and San Agustin beaches. The microplastics are mainly derived from tourism-based activities and effluents discharged from the hotels and restaurants located along the beaches. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available