Identification of Microplastic in the Digestive Tracts of Mackerel Tuna, Lemuru and Sea Water from Pangandaran, Indonesia

Microplastic is a form of marine pollution that accumulates in water and disrupts the food chain in marine ecosystems including fish. If plastic particles accumulate in large quantities in the fish's body, the microplastic can clog the digestive tract of the fish. Pelagic fish have the potential to eat microplastic both intentionally and unintentionally, considering that this type of fish has a very wide variety of properties, and has a level of error-detecting food. The accumulation of microplastic particles in fish intestinal organs can cause inflammation, and physiological disorders (swimming ability, reproductive time). The research was carried out on the waters of Pangandaran East Coast (07°41′31.6″S 108°45′11.9″E), continued at the Biogeochemical Laboratory of the Faculty of Fisheries and Marine Sciences to analyze microplastic abundances in fish intestines and water. The highest microplastic abundance was in mackerel tuna with fragments of 4.61 ± 2.61 particles/g, whereas in the lemuru fish, the highest abundance value was found in the form of fiber as much as 2.45 ± 2.39 particles/g. The highest microplastic abundance value at station two in water samples was recorded at 1.33 particles/m3 with the dominant fragments. The results of the analysis using the FTIR method found the types of plastic polymers in the three sample forms, namely fragments, fibres and films. The results of FTIR analysis found 2 types of polymers, namely polypropylene (PP) and polyester (PES). In the sample fragments and films found the same type of polymer, namely polypropylene (PP), while the fiber was found in the type of polyester polymer (PES).