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How microplastics quantities increase with flood events? An example from Mersin Bay NE Levantine coast of Turkey
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Sampling before and after major flood events in Mersin Bay, Turkey showed that microplastic concentrations in coastal waters increased significantly following floods, likely due to transport of plastic waste from land. The results provide direct evidence that extreme rainfall events can rapidly escalate microplastic pollution in coastal marine environments.
Floods caused by heavy rain carry significant amounts of pollutants into marine environments. This study evaluates the effect of multiple floods that occurred in the northeastern Mediterranean region in Turkey between December 2016 and January 2017 on the microplastic pollution in the Mersin Bay. Sampling was repeated in four different stations both before and after the flood period, and it was determined that in the four stations, there was an average of 539,189 MPs/km before the flood, and 7,699,716 MPs/km afterwards, representing a 14-fold increase. Fourteen different polymer types were detected in an ATR FT-IR analysis, eight of which were not found in samples collected before the floods. The most common polymer type was identified as polyethylene both pre- and post-flood. The mean particle size, which was 2.37 mm in the pre-flood period, decreased to 1.13 mm in the post-flood period. A hydrodynamic modeling study was implemented to hindcast the current structure and the spatial and temporal distributions of microplastics within the study area. In conclusion, heavy rain and severe floods can dramatically increase the microplastic levels in the sea.
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Researchers review global evidence showing that flooding events rapidly mobilize accumulated microplastics from soils, sediments, and urban surfaces, delivering concentrated pulses to shallow coastal ecosystems and incrementally raising background contamination levels — concluding that extreme hydrological events must be factored into coastal microplastic monitoring and ecological risk frameworks.
Plastic Pollution Getting Worse: Extreme Rain And Flash Floods Multiply Concentration Of Microplastics In Marine Ecosystems
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This report documented a 14-fold increase in microplastic concentrations in Mersin Bay, Turkey, following extreme flooding in December 2016, demonstrating how flash floods rapidly mobilize and transport plastic pollution into coastal waters. The finding highlights the link between climate change-driven extreme weather events and acute spikes in marine microplastic contamination.
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Researchers compared microplastic pellet abundance on the Chennai coast before and after a major 2015 flood and found a threefold increase in pellet density post-flood, attributing the surge to urban river runoff carrying fresh plastic debris — demonstrating that extreme rainfall events are significant episodic drivers of coastal microplastic pollution.
Behavior of macro and microplastics in surface waters in response to extreme meteorological events: a case study on a typical Mediterranean watershed.
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Researchers measured macro- and microplastic concentrations in Mediterranean freshwaters during dry and wet weather periods, finding that rainfall events dramatically increased plastic loads in urban waterways. More urbanized catchments showed higher plastic concentrations during storm events, confirming that urban stormwater runoff is a major driver of microplastic input to rivers. The study highlights the importance of monitoring during and after rain events to capture the full scale of plastic pollution in urban rivers.
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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.