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Microplastics Intercepted in Mangrove Forests: Sources, Generation, and Mitigation Strategies
Summary
This review paper looks at how plastic waste builds up and breaks down into microplastics in mangrove forests—coastal ecosystems that trap trash from the ocean, land, and even air. This matters because mangroves are nurseries for fish and seafood we eat, so microplastics trapped there can work their way up the food chain and onto our plates. The researchers highlight using bacteria and other microbes as a promising, natural way to help break down this plastic pollution before it spreads further.
The coastal ecosystem becomes the potential interceptor of enormous waste from different origins. Mangrove forests worldwide are suffocating from the accumulation of plastic waste and irremovable microplastics on the forest floor. These invaders can be released from marine, terrestrial, and atmospheric sources. Subsequently, they are disseminated through natural movement and human activities. The generation of secondary microplastics from accumulated plastic waste is facilitated through abiotic and biotic degradations. Plastic waste initially undergoes weathering processes and breaks down into small pieces that microorganisms can utilize as carbon and energy sources. With unique attributes like mudflats and pneumatophores, mangrove forests provide a big challenge to pursuing mitigation strategies for plastic and microplastic pollution. Recently, bioremediation by microorganisms has emerged as one of the promising solutions for solving this pollution in mangrove forests. However, integrating mitigation strategies should be executed from the sources to the destination and from generation to degradation of microplastics. This chapter addresses microplastic pollution in mangrove forests with a particular focus on the potential sources, common generation, and feasible mitigation strategies.