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Long-range transport of oil by marine plastic debris: Evidence from an 8,500 km journey
Summary
This study used physical oceanographic modeling and molecular forensics to demonstrate that oil from Brazil's 2019 mystery spill traveled approximately 8,500 km in 240 days to reach Palm Beach, Florida, carried by marine plastic debris. The findings demonstrate an additive contaminant effect where plastic pollution enables unprecedented long-range transequatorial transport of oil pollution.
Weathering processes typically restrict the distance spilled oil travels in the ocean to a few hundred kilometers. Leveraging oiled marine debris as “drifters of opportunity”, we tested the hypothesis of the unprecedented long-range (thousands of kilometers) transequatorial transport of oil adhered to marine debris by surface currents. Physical oceanographic modeling provided the plausibility for this hypothesis, and molecular forensics provided the definitive evidence supporting it. Oil carried by marine debris arriving at Palm Beach, Florida in 2020 matched oil from the 2019 Brazil mystery oil spill, having traveled ~8,500 km in ~240 days. We demonstrate an additive contaminant effect whereby plastic pollution facilitates the long-range transport of oil pollution. These findings underscore that regional inputs into the global ocean can have transboundary impacts.