Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Microplastic Pollution on the Beaches of the Black Sea in Romania and Bulgaria

Researchers characterized microplastic pollution on beaches along the Black Sea coast in Romania and Bulgaria, finding microplastics at all sampled sites with fragment and fiber morphologies predominating and higher concentrations near tourist and urban areas.

2025 Applied Sciences 4 citations
Article Tier 2

An analysis of the current and forecasted ecological risk related to the presence of microplastics on the Romanian Black Sea coast

Researchers analyzed microplastics along 82 km of Romania's Black Sea coastline, finding densities between 122 and 536 particles per kilogram of sediment, with polyethylene as the dominant polymer. Forecasting models predict a sharp rise in ecological risk if plastic waste reduction and management practices are not urgently improved.

2025 Heliyon 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic occurrence in coastal waters and aquatic faunas of the Western Black Sea

Researchers assessed microplastic occurrence in coastal waters and aquatic fauna of the Western Black Sea region receiving Danube River inputs, characterizing MP distributions in a coastal ecosystem under pressure from tourism, fishing, regional conflicts, and inadequate waste disposal across the Danube basin.

2024
Article Tier 2

Evaluation of abundance of microplastics in the Bulgarian coastal waters

This study assessed microplastic pollution in Bulgarian Black Sea coastal waters across different site types — protected, aquaculture, and industrial zones — providing one of the first quantitative datasets for this undermonitored region. The presence of microplastics in all areas, including protected sites, indicates that contamination is pervasive and that Black Sea marine organisms face widespread exposure to particles that can also carry adsorbed chemical pollutants.

2023 BIORISK – Biodiversity and Ecosystem Risk Assessment 13 citations
Article Tier 2

Transboundary Tides: Investigating Marine Plastic Pollution and Its Impact on the Black Sea Coastline

Researchers surveyed beaches in Romania along the Black Sea coast for plastic and microplastic litter, using harmonized EU monitoring methods including beach transect surveys and sediment sampling. Results revealed significant accumulation of plastic debris with transboundary origins confirmed by litter composition analysis, underscoring the need for coordinated regional action.

2025
Review Tier 2

Comprehensive Review regarding the Profile of the Microplastic Pollution in the Coastal Area of the Black Sea

This literature review profiled microplastic pollution across the Black Sea, summarizing contamination levels in water, sediment, and seafood consumed by coastal populations. The Black Sea's unique hydrodynamics and heavy riverine inputs create hotspots for microplastic accumulation, with seafood contamination posing direct human exposure concerns.

2022 Sustainability 49 citations
Article Tier 2

Quantitative and qualitative evaluation of plastic particles in surface waters of the Western Black Sea

Researchers collected surface water samples from the Western Black Sea near the Danube Delta and Romanian shore, finding micro-, meso-, and macroplastic particles that may contribute significantly to Mediterranean marine pollution via the connecting waterway. Organic matter was digested and plastic particles were isolated and characterised to quantify and identify the polymer types present.

2020 Environmental Pollution 67 citations
Article Tier 2

Sedimentary microplastic concentrations from the Romanian Danube River to the Black Sea

Researchers measured microplastic concentrations in sediments along the Danube River through the Danube Delta and into the Black Sea, finding that some isolated areas of the Delta still had relatively few plastic particles. The study helps clarify how microplastics move from major rivers into the ocean, an important step for estimating global ocean plastic loads.

2021 Scientific Reports 100 citations
Article Tier 2

Characterisation of floating microplastic in Romanian coastal waters, Western Black Sea

Researchers characterized floating microplastic distribution in Romanian coastal waters of the western Black Sea, analyzing 2,526 particles collected from five locations in March 2024. They found an average concentration of 3.07 particles per cubic meter, with fibers as the most common morphotype, and documented the polymer composition and color distribution across coastal sites.

2025 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Characterisation of floating microplastic in Romanian coastal waters, Western Black Sea

Researchers characterized floating microplastic distribution in Romanian coastal waters of the western Black Sea, analyzing 2,526 particles collected from five locations in March 2024. They found an average concentration of 3.07 particles per cubic meter, with fibers as the most common morphotype, and documented the polymer composition and color distribution across coastal sites.

2025 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and floating litter pollution in Bulgarian Black Sea coastal waters

Researchers conducted a pilot study of floating marine litter and microplastics along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, finding high quantities of floating litter (60.3-93.8 items per km) and microplastic concentrations of 0.114 to 1.91 x 10 items per km. Concentrations were on average lower than in other parts of the Black Sea, Baltic Sea, and Mediterranean Sea, though observed ranges were comparable.

2020 Marine Pollution Bulletin 70 citations
Article Tier 2

Assesment of the Marine Litter on the Romanian Black Sea Beaches

Seasonal surveys of Romanian Black Sea beaches found cigarette butts and plastic fragments as the most common litter types, with plastic pollution varying by level of tourist activity. Beach surveys like this establish baseline data for tracking progress on reducing plastic pollution in coastal areas.

2021 Cercetări Marine - Recherches Marines 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Pollution Profile in the Black Sea Region

Researchers reviewed 100 peer-reviewed articles to create a comprehensive pollution profile of microplastics in the Black Sea region. They found that microplastics have been documented across multiple environmental compartments in the region, with plastic products from various industrial sectors contributing to contamination. The review provides an overview of the current state of knowledge on microplastic distribution and sources specific to this ecologically important semi-enclosed sea.

2024 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Indicators to assess temporal variability in marine connectivity processes: A semi-theoretical approach

Not relevant to microplastics — this is an oceanography study developing indicators to characterize temporal variability in marine connectivity for designing effective marine protected area networks in the Mediterranean.

2024 PLoS ONE 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Exploring the Microplastics Distribution in the Bottom Sediments of the Western Black Sea

Researchers surveyed the bottom sediments of the western Black Sea and found microplastic particles at every sampling site, with fibers the most common shape and polyethylene/polypropylene the most common polymer types. The widespread presence across the shelf zone, without a clear pattern tied to distance from shore, suggests diffuse anthropogenic inputs rather than a single point source — a finding that complicates clean-up and monitoring efforts for this semi-enclosed sea.

2024 Visnyk of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv Geology 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Research and Analysis of Pollution Indicators in Marine and Coastal Ecosystems along the Southern Black Sea Coast

Researchers conducted monthly in situ measurements and laboratory analyses at nine sites across Burgas Lake, the Karaagach River mouth, and Burgas Bay along the Southern Black Sea coast during 2022-2023, performing the first quantitative microplastic analysis in the region alongside toxic metal measurements to assess ecosystem pollution status.

2025 Bulgarian Portal for Open Science
Article Tier 2

Microplastic contamination and characteristics spatially vary in the southern Black Sea beach sediment and sea surface water

Microplastic abundance and characteristics were assessed along the southern Black Sea coastline, finding that over 70% of particles were smaller than 2.5 mm, with average concentrations of 64 particles/kg in beach sediment and 18.68 particles/m3 in seawater, and the Marmara region showing highest pollution.

2021 Marine Pollution Bulletin 95 citations
Article Tier 2

Identification and Quantitative Pollutant analysis: A novel approach for environmental assessment in the Romanian Black Sea Coast

This paper examined multiple pollution factors affecting the Black Sea Romanian coastal zone, including microplastics, heavy metals, PAHs, and emerging substances, with attention to impacts from the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict and military activities. It proposed an integrated multi-pollutant assessment framework for characterizing coastal marine ecosystem health.

2024 Scientific Bulletin of Naval Academy
Article Tier 2

High microplastic pollution in marine sediments associated with urbanised areas along the SW Bulgarian Black Sea coast

Researchers measured microplastic concentrations in beach and seabed sediments along the southwestern Bulgarian Black Sea coast. Urbanized coastal areas had significantly higher microplastic levels than non-urbanized areas, with seabed samples averaging over 800 particles per kilogram of dry sediment. The study identified sewage discharges, urban waste, fisheries, and marine litter accumulation as likely sources of the contamination.

2024 Marine Pollution Bulletin 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Contamination of the Seawater in the Hamsilos Bay of the Southern Black Sea

Researchers monitored microplastic contamination in the water column of Hamsilos Bay, a protected natural area on the Black Sea coast of Turkey, over 12 months. They found microplastics at all sampling stations, with fibers being the dominant type and polyethylene terephthalate the most common polymer identified. The study demonstrates that even protected coastal areas are not immune to microplastic pollution and provides important baseline data for this ecologically sensitive region.

2024 Water Air & Soil Pollution 21 citations
Article Tier 2

Research of Plastics and Microplastics in the Black Sea Geoecosystem as a Component of Its Pollution Assessment

This overview examines the state of research on plastic and microplastic contamination across the Ukrainian portion of the Black Sea, covering both the water column and seafloor sediments. The authors identify monitoring gaps and call for a standardized, European-aligned observation network to track how synthetic polymers move through and accumulate in this ecologically important regional sea.

2024 Ukrainian geographical journal 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Short-term tourism alters abundance, size, and composition of microplastics on sandy beaches

Researchers sampled microplastics on nine sandy beaches along the Turkish Black Sea coast before and after the tourism season and found that tourist activity significantly increased microplastic abundance, altered size distributions, and changed polymer composition. The results provide direct field evidence that recreational beach use is a local source of microplastic pollution.

2022 Environmental Pollution 58 citations
Article Tier 2

Factors Influencing the Three-dimensional Distribution of Microplastics on Sandy Beaches: A Case Study from the Turkish Coast of the Black Sea

A study of nine Black Sea beaches in Turkey found that microplastic abundance varied significantly with beach width, sand grain size, organic content, and tourism pressure, revealing that local physical and human factors shape how microplastics accumulate across the three-dimensional sediment profile. These findings help explain why microplastic hotspots form on particular beaches and can guide targeted cleanup and monitoring efforts.

2024 Turkish Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of coastal wastewater treatment plants on microplastic pollution in surface seawater and ecological risk assessment

Microplastics were sampled at nine stations along the southern coast of Istanbul's Bosphorus to assess the influence of nearby wastewater treatment plant discharges on surface seawater contamination. Treatment plant outfalls were confirmed as localized hotspots, with ecological risk highest near discharge points.

2022 Environmental Pollution 63 citations