Quantity and types of plastic waste in Beaches: A case study of Al-Shuaybah beach, Saudi Arabia

Plastic pollution is one of the major environmental concerns that are known to negatively impact marine life and human health.An evaluation of the availability, quantity, and types of plastic waste was conducted at Al-Shuaybah beach, Saudi Arabia.A total of 1504 different plastic pieces were collected from the sampling site; (i) 27.8% un-identified pieces; (ii) 22.7% water bottles; (iii) 21.7% bottle caps; (iv) 12.2% plastic bags; 5.6% spoons; (v) 4.7% plastic cups; (vi) 3.8% plastic straws; (vii) 1% plastic masks; and (viii) 0.4% plastic fishing lines.The largest piece of plastic found was a bag with a dimension of 50 cm while the smallest was an un-identified piece with a dimension of 0.3 cm.The fishing lines were the heaviest (14.3 kg) followed by water bottles (5.2 kg) and water bottle caps (4.6 kg).Using CCI, the assessed beach was categorized as "extremely dirty" with plastic waste.The results indicate that beaches in Saudi Arabia are at risk of plastic pollution which could endanger marine life and indirectly affects human health.Increasing awareness on the harmful effects of plastic waste may assist in tackling this serious threat.