The Limited Times

Now you can see non-English news...

European researchers reveal that the amount of plastic deposits has increased, on average, threefold over the past two decades

2022-12-28T16:44:16.066Z


Madrid, SANA- European researchers revealed that the total amount of microplastics deposited on the sea floor has doubled


Madrid-Sana

European researchers revealed that the total amount of microplastics sedimented at the bottom of the Mediterranean has tripled over the past two decades, coinciding with the development of the volume of plastic products consumption by human societies, in the main urban centers north and southeast of the sea.

The study was published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, and was carried out by researchers at the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Autonomous University of Barcelona and the Department of Environment at the Danish University of Aalborg, where they collected a group of sediments from the Mediterranean Sea and then used advanced imaging technology to study the microplastics contained in these sediments, which made it possible Have knowledge of the accumulation of microplastics in marine sediments, and understand how they change or not change after they become an integral part of the sediment.

The researchers collected the sediment in 2019 on board a ship during an expedition that set off from Barcelona to Tarragona in Spain, and chose the western Mediterranean to be a hot area for the study, due to the large population density on its coasts from all sides, which makes it a trap for plastic debris, as the rivers there were identified as a source. Important for many pollutants, including microplastics and chemicals.

The researchers pointed out that more than 229,000 tons of plastic waste leak into the Mediterranean every year, equivalent to more than 500 shipping containers per day, and this amount is expected to double by 2040.

The researchers showed that microplastics are preserved unaltered in marine sediments, and that the mass of microplastics buried on the sea floor kept pace with the increase in plastic production globally from 1965 to 2016.

The researchers warned of the danger of plastic waste to the marine environment, the destruction of fish and other marine organisms, and its damage even to the environment of animals and birds.

Follow SANA's news on Telegram https://t.me/SyrianArabNewsAgency

Source: sena

All news articles on 2022-12-28

You may like

Trends 24h

Latest

© Communities 2019 - Privacy

The information on this site is from external sources that are not under our control.
The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.