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An investigation on the presence and risk assessment of microplastics in Quilon Beach, South West Coast of India
Summary
Researchers conducted the first investigation of microplastic pollution in Quilon Beach sediments on India's southwest coast. They found microplastics present at all sampling sites, with fibers and fragments being the most common types, largely derived from fishing activities and tourism. The study establishes a pollution baseline for this coastline and highlights the need for targeted waste reduction strategies.
Microplastics (MPs) are the most serious emerging pollutant around the globe. Anthropogenic activities are the major contributor of MPs in beach sediments. MPs are widely distributed along beaches and pose a serious threat to the marine food chain including human health. The present study aims to investigate, for the first time, the occurrence, quantification of abundance and risk assessment of MPs in Quilon beach, India and also identifies the potential sources along with the assessment of degree of MPs contamination using Pollution load index (PLI) and Pollution Hazard index (PHI) parameters. Sampling was conducted in dry season in the beach. A total of thirty-three samples were collected establishing a 20 m grid pattern along the study area. MPs of size range 5 mm - < 0.25 mm were considered. The average abundance of MPs in the study area is 3145 ± 2515 MPs/kg of sand. Polyester (PES), Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) are the major polymer types in the study area. Fibre was the most dominant shapes. The frequent colours found were white and transparent. MPs of size < 0.25 mm were the most common of all the samples. Anthropogenic activities including sewage effluents, fishing and tourism activities might be the main sources of MPs pollution in this area. • The study reports microplastic pollution in Quilon beach, India. • Fibres and fragments are found dominant along the beach. • Major polymers identified are PES and ABS. • Environmental risk evaluation viz. PLI and PHI were used in this study. • Beach tourism and fishing are the major contributors of MPs pollution in the beach.