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Anthropogenic litter and plastics across size classes on a mechanically groomed Great Lakes urban beach
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Surface litter surveys on a mechanically groomed Lake Erie urban beach found that mechanical grooming significantly reduced litter concentrations, but plastic pollution remained present across all size classes, with proximity to urban sources and visitor activity maintaining ongoing inputs.
Anthropogenic litter and plastic pollution are well-recognized global and Great Lakes stressors, but the distribution of plastic pollution on shorelines is uneven. Beaches in urban areas are close to many potential sources of plastic pollution and often heavily visited, so are likely exposed to high litter inputs. Conversely, beach maintenance activities, including mechanical grooming, may lower litter concentrations. In the summer of 2021, surface litter and > 2 mm anthropogenic materials within the top 5 cm of beach sediment were repeatedly measured along 10 transects at Euclid Beach, in Cleveland, Ohio. Plastics comprised 79 % of litter > 50 mm and 100 % of smaller visible litter on the beach surface. Surface litter concentrations (0.279 pieces m −2 ) were relatively low compared to previously studied Great Lakes strandlines, with mechanical grooming and beach visitor usage influencing litter distribution. However, when plastics within the top 5 cm of the beach sediment were included, Euclid Beach microplastics (54.7 pieces m −2 ) and mesoplastics (45.0 pieces m −2 ) concentrations were among the highest in the Great Lakes. Plastic production pellets were the most common microplastic morphology, while foamed plastics were the most common mesoplastics. Most plastics in the sediment were too small to be removed by mechanical grooming, but fragmentation of larger, weathered plastics is a potential concern deserving further investigation. Overall, our results suggest that urban, mechanically-groomed beaches can have high plastics loads. Such beaches should be strategically included in larger scale studies of plastic pollution along shorelines, especially when considering issues of environmental justice.
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Factors controlling the abundance, distribution, and composition of macroplastic and microplastic particles in tributary, beach, and benthic sediments of Lake Erie, Ontario
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This study examined the factors controlling the abundance, distribution, and composition of microplastics in tributary, beach, and benthic sediments of Lake Erie, finding that urban tributaries contained more microplastics than rural ones and that backshore beach zones accumulated more plastic than foreshores. The findings highlight how watershed urbanization and beach dynamics control microplastic distribution in one of North America's largest freshwater lakes.
Wrack and Ruin: Characterizing Plastic and Microplastic Occurrences on Southeastern Lake Michigan Beaches
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Surveys of southeastern Lake Michigan beaches identified microplastics including industrial nurdles and shotgun wads from non-local sources, with beach wrack zones acting as accumulation hotspots for both macro- and microplastics. These findings suggest that lake currents and river transport are delivering plastic debris to freshwater beaches far from their point of origin.
An analysis of microlitter and microplastics from Lake Superior beach sand and surface-water
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Researchers sampled beach sand and surface water in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore of Lake Superior, finding microlitter particles including microplastics even in this relatively pristine Great Lakes environment, with samples collected in May and July 2018.
Microplastics in Beach Sediment Along Southern Shores of Lake Michigan
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Microplastics were detected at all four Indiana beaches along southern Lake Michigan, with pellets and foam being the dominant types and concentrations rivaling those found in marine coastal environments. This confirms the Great Lakes as a significant freshwater reservoir of microplastic pollution, raising concerns about contamination of a major drinking water source.
Covariance of Particle Size and Shape of Microplastic Pollutants Transported to Terrestrial Dunes from the Shores of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario, Ny and Pa
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Wind-driven transport deposits microplastics of diverse sizes and shapes—including spheres, fragments, and fibers—from Great Lakes shorelines into terrestrial dune sediments, with surface and subsurface samples both showing contamination. The covariance of particle size and shape in these deposits reflects the physical sorting processes of aeolian transport, informing how microplastics disperse beyond aquatic systems into terrestrial landscapes.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.