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Seafloor litter in two protected areas (Sopot and Dražin vrt) in the Boka Kotorska Bay (Montenegro, southeast Adriatic Sea)
Summary
This study assessed seafloor marine litter pollution in two protected areas in Montenegro's Boka Kotorska Bay during 2020-2021. Despite their protected status, both sites showed high levels of plastic litter, with a mean density of 3 items/100 m², highlighting the inadequacy of current protections.
The first assesment of seafloor marine litter pollution in marine protected areas in Montenegro is presented. Surveys were performed during 2020 and 2021 year at two protected marine areas “Sopot” and “Dražin vrt”. Methodology was based on visual survey by SCUBA diving during cleaning campains. The results show dominance of plastic litter (46.91%), while considering the size classes, the most numerous was size class I (46.54%). Mean density of marine litter was 3 items/100 m2. Results indicate that both investigated MPA's are highly polluted by seafloor marine litter, what highlights the need for constant monitoring.