Occurrence, Composition, and Relationships in Marine Plastic Debris on the First Long Beach Adjacent to the Land-Based Source, South China Sea
Land-based sources are the key sources of plastic debris, and mismanaged plastic debris can eventually enter the ocean via marine beaches. In this study, the spatial distribution and amount of plastic debris in the land-based source input zone of First Long Beach (FLB), China, which is a major touri...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-08-01
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| Series: | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/8/9/666 |
| _version_ | 1827707279852437504 |
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| author | Peng Zhang Shan-Shan Wei Ji-Biao Zhang Zhou Ou Yu-Qin Yang Ming-Yue Wang |
| author_facet | Peng Zhang Shan-Shan Wei Ji-Biao Zhang Zhou Ou Yu-Qin Yang Ming-Yue Wang |
| author_sort | Peng Zhang |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Land-based sources are the key sources of plastic debris, and mismanaged plastic debris can eventually enter the ocean via marine beaches. In this study, the spatial distribution and amount of plastic debris in the land-based source input zone of First Long Beach (FLB), China, which is a major tourist attraction, were first investigated. By using field investigation, sand samples were collected from two sections on FLB adjacent to land-based sources in December 2019, and the plastic debris in the sand samples was quantified and characterized in the laboratory. The amount of plastic debris ranged from 2 to 82 particles/m<sup>2</sup> on this marine sand beach. There was a significant difference in plastic debris amount between the transects along the land-based source input zone (<i>p</i> < 0.05) due to the impacts of wind, ocean currents, and waves. The most abundant size of plastics was 0.5–2.5 cm (44.4%). Moreover, the most common color was white (60.9%). The most abundant shape of plastic debris fell into the fragment category (76.2%). The plastic debris amounts were significantly correlated with multiple sizes. Our results show that land-based wastewater discharge is a large plastic debris source on FLB under coastal water tide variation. Reduction strategies should be carried out by tracing the various land-based sources of plastic debris. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:43:30Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-0455b46f1b154806ba0a51a87818d5f8 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1312 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T16:43:30Z |
| publishDate | 2020-08-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Marine Science and Engineering |
| spelling | doaj.art-0455b46f1b154806ba0a51a87818d5f82023-11-20T11:47:09ZengMDPI AGJournal of Marine Science and Engineering2077-13122020-08-018966610.3390/jmse8090666Occurrence, Composition, and Relationships in Marine Plastic Debris on the First Long Beach Adjacent to the Land-Based Source, South China SeaPeng Zhang0Shan-Shan Wei1Ji-Biao Zhang2Zhou Ou3Yu-Qin Yang4Ming-Yue Wang5College of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang 524088, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang 524088, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang 524088, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang 524088, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang 524088, ChinaCollege of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang 524088, ChinaLand-based sources are the key sources of plastic debris, and mismanaged plastic debris can eventually enter the ocean via marine beaches. In this study, the spatial distribution and amount of plastic debris in the land-based source input zone of First Long Beach (FLB), China, which is a major tourist attraction, were first investigated. By using field investigation, sand samples were collected from two sections on FLB adjacent to land-based sources in December 2019, and the plastic debris in the sand samples was quantified and characterized in the laboratory. The amount of plastic debris ranged from 2 to 82 particles/m<sup>2</sup> on this marine sand beach. There was a significant difference in plastic debris amount between the transects along the land-based source input zone (<i>p</i> < 0.05) due to the impacts of wind, ocean currents, and waves. The most abundant size of plastics was 0.5–2.5 cm (44.4%). Moreover, the most common color was white (60.9%). The most abundant shape of plastic debris fell into the fragment category (76.2%). The plastic debris amounts were significantly correlated with multiple sizes. Our results show that land-based wastewater discharge is a large plastic debris source on FLB under coastal water tide variation. Reduction strategies should be carried out by tracing the various land-based sources of plastic debris.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/8/9/666spatial distributionplastic debrismarine beachland-based source inputreduction strategies |
| spellingShingle | Peng Zhang Shan-Shan Wei Ji-Biao Zhang Zhou Ou Yu-Qin Yang Ming-Yue Wang Occurrence, Composition, and Relationships in Marine Plastic Debris on the First Long Beach Adjacent to the Land-Based Source, South China Sea Journal of Marine Science and Engineering spatial distribution plastic debris marine beach land-based source input reduction strategies |
| title | Occurrence, Composition, and Relationships in Marine Plastic Debris on the First Long Beach Adjacent to the Land-Based Source, South China Sea |
| title_full | Occurrence, Composition, and Relationships in Marine Plastic Debris on the First Long Beach Adjacent to the Land-Based Source, South China Sea |
| title_fullStr | Occurrence, Composition, and Relationships in Marine Plastic Debris on the First Long Beach Adjacent to the Land-Based Source, South China Sea |
| title_full_unstemmed | Occurrence, Composition, and Relationships in Marine Plastic Debris on the First Long Beach Adjacent to the Land-Based Source, South China Sea |
| title_short | Occurrence, Composition, and Relationships in Marine Plastic Debris on the First Long Beach Adjacent to the Land-Based Source, South China Sea |
| title_sort | occurrence composition and relationships in marine plastic debris on the first long beach adjacent to the land based source south china sea |
| topic | spatial distribution plastic debris marine beach land-based source input reduction strategies |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1312/8/9/666 |
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