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Microplastics Pollution in Chile: Current Situation and Future Prospects
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This review summarizes the state of microplastic pollution research in Chile, covering ocean waters, coastlines, freshwater, and terrestrial environments. Microplastics have been detected throughout Chilean ecosystems, including in seafood consumed by people. The authors call for national monitoring programs and stronger plastic waste policies to address the growing problem.
Millions of tons of plastics enter wild habitats, especially the oceans, every year. Despite extensive efforts, this amount is predicted to increase over in the near future, leading to a catastrophic damage to the environment. Small plastic fragments, including microplastics, are currently widely distributed in different environments and contribute significantly to pollution of the oceans. This problem is particularly poignant in Chile, a country with more than 4,000 km of coastline along the Pacific Ocean home to diverse environments, industrial activities and unique biodiversity. In this review, we compile information regarding microplastics pollution in Chilean environments in terms of transport, distribution and bioaccumulation along the country, societal actions such as environmental policies and education to tackle the plastic problem, and the Trojan effect associated with it. Finally, we identify critical scientific gaps, such as the transport of harmful chemicals and microbial communities associated, and define potential future research directions.
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Tracking microplastics and the associated ecological risk in the southwestern Pacific Ocean
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Researchers assessed microplastic abundance and composition along an approximately 1,000 km oceanographic transect of the southwestern Pacific coast of Chile, sampling at six river mouths and characterizing the ecological risk associated with plastic pollution entering coastal marine environments.
Microplastics in Ecuador: A review of environmental and health-risk assessment challenges
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This review summarizes the current state of microplastic research in Ecuador, covering contamination in marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments as well as potential health effects. Researchers found that while evidence of microplastic pollution across Ecuador is growing, significant gaps remain in monitoring coverage and risk assessment methods. The study calls for standardized sampling and analysis protocols to better understand the scope of microplastic contamination in the country.
The Occurrence of Microplastics in the Marine Food Web in Latin America: Insights on the Current State of Knowledge and Future Perspectives
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This review examines microplastic contamination in marine organisms across Latin America, where wastewater, industry, and plastic breakdown are major sources. Microplastics were found in fish, shellfish, seabirds, and other marine life, entering the food chain through ingestion and passing between species. Since many of these organisms are eaten by people, the findings raise concerns about human exposure to microplastics through seafood in the region.
Microplastics in Latin America and the Caribbean: A review on current status and perspectives
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This review assessed the current status of microplastic research across Latin America and the Caribbean, covering occurrence in water, sediments, and soil, as well as effects on aquatic and terrestrial organisms, and identifying key knowledge gaps in the region.
Presence and characterization of microplastics in fish of commercial importance from the Biobío region in central Chile
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Six commercially important fish species from coastal and oceanic habitats in central Chile were analyzed for microplastics, with red microfibers (70–100% of particles) as the dominant form and polyester, PE, and PET as the main polymers, and coastal species showing higher abundance and larger fibers than oceanic species. The study documents microplastic contamination in Chilean commercial fisheries and a habitat-dependent difference in plastic burden.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.