Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Occurrence and spatial distribution of microplastics in sediments from Norderney

Researchers surveyed sediments from Norderney in the North Sea and found widespread microplastic contamination, documenting spatial distribution patterns and particle characteristics across this tidally influenced coastal environment.

2014 Environmental Pollution 608 citations
Article Tier 2

Assessment of marine debris on the Belgian Continental Shelf

Researchers assessed marine debris across beach, sea surface, and seafloor compartments of Belgian coastal waters over two consecutive years, finding that plastic items dominated macrodebris at over 95% of all debris by count. Microplastic concentrations were also quantified in all three compartments, revealing consistent contamination across the Belgian Continental Shelf.

2013 Marine Pollution Bulletin 213 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics Baseline Surveys at the Water Surface and in Sediments of the North-East Atlantic

Researchers measured microplastic concentrations at the sea surface and in sediments across the southern North Sea and northwestern Europe, finding highly variable but widespread contamination. Sediments contained far higher concentrations than surface waters, confirming that the seafloor acts as a major sink for microplastic pollution.

2017 Frontiers in Marine Science 308 citations
Article Tier 2

Distribution and characterization of microplastics in marine sediments from coastal and offshore in South Korea

Researchers conducted an intensive survey of microplastic levels and distribution in marine sediments from coastal areas, recognizing the seafloor as the ultimate repository for plastic particles. Microplastic concentrations in sediments were highest near urban and industrial coastlines, with fibers and fragments as the most common types.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in sea surface waters in the Southern Bight of the North Sea

Researchers quantified floating microplastics in surface waters of the Southern Bight of the North Sea, finding elevated concentrations near the Belgian and Dutch coasts with size and polymer distributions reflecting riverine and shipping inputs.

2024 Frontiers in Marine Science 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence and identification of microplastics in beach sediments from the Hauts-de-France region

Microplastics were found in beach sediments along three sites on the northern French coast, with the most contaminated site near an urban-industrial area. Fragments and films dominated, reflecting local land-based and maritime sources of plastic pollution.

2019 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 57 citations
Article Tier 2

A large-scale investigation of microplastic contamination: Abundance and characteristics of microplastics in European beach sediment

This large-scale investigation characterized microplastic contamination across a wide geographic area, documenting abundance and polymer types and providing a baseline dataset for tracking pollution trends over time.

2017 Marine Pollution Bulletin 450 citations
Article Tier 2

Ubiquity of microplastics in coastal seafloor sediments

Researchers applied a novel method to quantify microplastic concentrations in seafloor sediments from 42 coastal sites across southeastern Australia. They found microplastics in all samples at an average concentration of 3.4 particles per milliliter of sediment, predominantly as filaments. The study demonstrates that microplastic contamination of coastal seafloor sediments is ubiquitous and that hydrological and sediment properties influence deposition patterns.

2017 Marine Pollution Bulletin 200 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic abundance and characteristics in French Atlantic coastal sediments using a new extraction method

Researchers developed a new extraction method for microplastics from coastal Atlantic sediments in France and applied it to characterize microplastic abundance and composition, finding widespread contamination and demonstrating the method's improved efficiency for recovering particles from sediment matrices.

2018 Environmental Pollution 127 citations
Article Tier 2

Spatial distribution of microplastics in sediments and surface waters of the southern North Sea

A systematic survey of microplastic distribution in sediments and surface waters of the southern North Sea found widespread contamination across the region, with spatial patterns reflecting currents, water depth, and proximity to shipping lanes and coastal inputs. The study provides a regional baseline for microplastic pollution in one of the world's busiest shipping and fishing areas.

2019 Environmental Pollution 275 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in the Mediterranean Sea: Deposition in coastal shallow sediments, spatial variation and preferential grain size

Researchers sampled Mediterranean coastal shallow sediments and found microplastics throughout, with concentrations and polymer types reflecting land-based inputs and showing that coastal sediments are a significant regional reservoir for plastic debris.

2016 Marine Environmental Research 617 citations
Article Tier 2

Abundance and characterization of microplastics on sandy beaches along the coastal area of Belize

Researchers quantified and characterized microplastic abundance on sandy beaches along the coastal zone of Belize, establishing baseline contamination data for a region of Central America and the Caribbean where such pollution assessments are critically lacking.

2025 Marine Pollution Bulletin
Article Tier 2

Distribution and characterization of microplastics in marine sediments from the Montenegrin coast

Researchers characterized microplastic distribution in marine sediments along the Montenegrin coast, providing the first assessment of microplastic pollution status in this understudied region of the Adriatic Sea.

2022 Journal of Soils and Sediments 39 citations
Article Tier 2

The fate of microplastic in marine sedimentary environments: A review and synthesis

A systematic review of 80 papers on microplastics in marine sediments found median concentrations varied widely by sediment environment, with fibers dominating many locations, and showed that sediment grain size and organic carbon content influence microplastic accumulation.

2020 Marine Pollution Bulletin 381 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution in North Yellow Sea, China: Observations on occurrence, distribution and identification

Researchers surveyed microplastic pollution across the North Yellow Sea, documenting their occurrence, distribution, and characteristics, and finding widespread contamination with higher concentrations in coastal areas and near river inputs.

2018 The Science of The Total Environment 412 citations
Article Tier 2

Global mapping for the occurrence of all-sized microplastics in seafloor sediments

Researchers compiled global seafloor microplastic data from 155 marine sediment samples including detailed sampling metadata and abundance measurements for 20 microplastic categories, providing foundational data for understanding the distribution and uncertainty of microplastic contamination on the seafloor.

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

Distribution and Types of Microplastics in Coastal Sediments of Sepanjang Beach

Researchers characterised the distribution and types of microplastics in coastal sediments of Sepanjang Beach, Indonesia, examining microplastic presence in relation to gastropod digestive tract contamination in the local marine environment.

2025 Sriwijaya Journal of Environment
Article Tier 2

Distribution and characterization of microplastics in marine sediments from coastal and offshore in South Korea

Researchers conducted an intensive survey of microplastic distribution and characterization in marine sediments from coastal areas, confirming the seafloor as a long-term sink for plastic pollution. Contamination was highest near urban coastlines, with fibers and fragments accumulating preferentially in low-energy depositional environments.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Deep Sea Microplastic Pollution Extends Out to Sediments in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean Margins

Researchers surveyed deep-sea sediments across four areas of the Northeast Atlantic and detected microplastics at 75% of stations sampled, finding no hotspots and no clear correlation with depth or distance from land, demonstrating the widespread extent of deep-sea microplastic contamination.

2022 Environmental Science & Technology 21 citations
Article Tier 2

The occurrence of microplastic contamination in littoral sediments of the Persian Gulf, Iran

Researchers surveyed littoral sediments of the Persian Gulf for microplastics, finding plastic particles across all sampling sites with a variety of polymer types. The study provides early baseline contamination data for a region with major petrochemical and industrial activity.

2017 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 202 citations
Article Tier 2

The influence of depositional environment on the abundance of microplastic pollution on beaches in the Bristol Channel, UK

Researchers assessed the extent and variability of microplastic pollution across multiple beaches in the Bristol Channel, UK, finding that depositional environment characteristics significantly influenced the abundance and distribution of microplastic contamination in beach sand.

2021 Marine Pollution Bulletin 47 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic concentrations in beach sediments along the German Baltic coast

Researchers measured microplastic contamination on beaches along the German Baltic coast near river estuaries and tracked seasonal variation over several months, finding contamination at all sites. The study highlights that river mouths are hotspots for microplastic deposition on coastal beaches.

2015 Marine Pollution Bulletin 500 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics and ultrafine microplastic in the Dutch Wadden Sea – The hidden plastics debris?

Researchers applied a novel analytical method to detect nanoplastics and ultrafine microplastics smaller than 10 micrometers in Dutch Wadden Sea sediments, revealing a previously hidden fraction of plastic debris that conventional methods miss.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 117 citations
Article Tier 2

The role of oceanographic processes and sedimentological settings on the deposition of microplastics in marine sediment: Icelandic waters

Researchers analyzed microplastics from marine sediment cores collected at eight sites on the Iceland continental shelf, examining how oceanographic processes and sedimentological settings influence the deposition and distribution of microplastic debris on the seafloor.

2021 Marine Pollution Bulletin 48 citations