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Microplastics in the coastal environment of West Iceland
Summary
Researchers surveyed microplastic contamination along the coastline of West Iceland, finding plastic particles at urban and some semi-rural sites near Reykjavik but none at rural locations, though the distribution was uneven due to strong ocean currents rather than a simple gradient of decreasing pollution away from the city.
Microplastic particles in the marine environment and the effects on wildlife, human and ecosystem health are just beginning to be understood in a global setting.The presence of microplastics particle in West Iceland are evaluated to determine if there is a detectable gradient of decreasing plastic concentrations with increasing distance from the urban centres around Reykjavik.The study region includes sample sites within urban, semi-rural and rural coastal settings, with 4 sites at each type of location being sampled.Microplastic particles were found at 3 of the urban sites, 2 of the semi-rural sites and not detected in any of the rural locations.It is concluded that a decreasing concentration gradient that is based solely on distance travelled from the urbanized area of Reykjavik does not exist due to patchy distributions that could be the result of strong influences from ocean currents and offshore activities. tdrtturPlastagnir umhverfi sjvar eru farnar a hafa hrif lfrki sjvar va um heim.Umfang plastagna var meti fjru Vesturlandi og kanna var hvort samband s milli magns plastagna og nlaegar vi ttbli, me herslu Reykjavk.Rannsknarsvaei ni fr Reykjavk til Breiafjarar