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Trace elements in microplastics in Cartagena: A hotspot for plastic pollution at the Caribbean
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Microplastics collected from beaches in Cartagena, Colombia were found to carry trace metals including mercury, lead, and arsenic at concentrations of potential concern. The findings add to evidence that microplastics can act as vectors for heavy metal contamination in coastal environments.
Microplastics are new pollutants considered a source of concern for the oceans worldwide. This research reports the concentrations of trace metals on microplastics collected on beaches from Cartagena, an industrialized city in the Caribbean. Mercury (Hg) was quantified using a Hg analyzer and forty-seven trace elements were assessed by ICP/MS. Most abundant microplastics in beaches were those with the lower degree of surface degradation features (SDF), categorized as white-new polyethylene pellets, followed by secondary microplastics (SM). Greater Hg levels were found in SM, white-degraded (WDP) and black pellets. Trace elements concentrations were linked to the degree of SDF registered in examined pellets, with larger concentrations in WDP. Compared to white-new pellets, Ba, Cr, Rb, Sr, Ce, Zr, Ni, Pb were the most accumulated elements in WDP, as their surface enhance the sorption processes. Microplastic pollution represents a toxicological hazard because its ability to accumulate and transport toxic elements.
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Researchers conducted a baseline survey of microplastic contamination on Colombia's Central Caribbean Coast beaches, documenting MP types, sizes, and polymer compositions for the first time in that region and finding primarily secondary microplastics from fragmented larger debris.
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Scientists found thousands of tiny plastic pieces, mostly fibers from things like clothing and rope, buried in beach and lagoon sediments along Colombia's Caribbean coast, near two major rivers. This matters because these microplastics can work their way into the food chain, potentially carrying harmful chemicals and heavy metals that end up in the seafood we eat. The study shows microplastic pollution is widespread in coastal ecosystems regardless of season, highlighting how plastic waste keeps accumulating in the environments that feed into our food supply.
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Researchers conducted the first assessment of microplastic pollution along 125 km of the Caribbean coast of La Guajira, Colombia. They found microplastics at four of seven beaches sampled, with filaments from fishing activities predominating and polymers primarily consisting of polypropylene, polyethylene, and polystyrene.
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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.