Marine litter along the shores of the Persian Gulf, Iran

Plastic wastes —including cigarette butts (CBs)— are dangerous for marine ecosystems not only because they contain hazardous chemicals but also because they can finally turn into micro- or even nano-particles that may be ingested by micro- and macro-fauna. Even large pieces of plastics can trap anim...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Heliyon Vol. 10; no. 9; p. e30853
Main Authors:	Jokar, Zahra, Banavi, Nafiseh, Taghizadehfard, Sara, Hassani, Fatemeh, Solimani, Rezvan, Azarpira, Nahid, Dehghani, Hanieh, Dezhgahi, Atefeh, Sanati, Ali Mohammad, Farjadfard, Sima, Ramavandi, Bahman
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	England Elsevier Ltd 15-05-2024 Elsevier
Subjects:	Large debris Marine litter Persian Gulf Sandy beach Seawater Sandy beach Large debris Persian Gulf Marine litter Seawater
Online Access:	Get full text
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Summary:	Plastic wastes —including cigarette butts (CBs)— are dangerous for marine ecosystems not only because they contain hazardous chemicals but also because they can finally turn into micro- or even nano-particles that may be ingested by micro- and macro-fauna. Even large pieces of plastics can trap animals. In this research, the pollution status of macroplastics (abundance, size, type, and colour) and cigarette butts (CBs, number/m2) on the northern coasts of the Persian Gulf has been investigated. A total of 19 stations were explored in Bushehr province (Iran), which covers a length equivalent to 160 km of the Persian Gulf coastline. Among the collected plastic waste (2992 items), disposable mugs were the most frequent (18 %). Plastics with sizes 5–15 cm were the most abundant, and the most common type of plastic was PET (P-value <0.05). The origin of most macroplastics was domestic (2269 items). According to the Index of Clean Coasts (ICC), most surveyed beaches were extremely dirty. The average number and density of CBs in this study were 220 and 2.45 items/m2, respectively. Household litter was the most abundant type of waste in the studied beaches, and this problem can be better managed by training and improving the waste disposal culture. In general, it is suggested that an integrated and enhanced management for fishing, sewage and surface water disposal, and sandy recreational beaches be implemented in Bushehr to control plastic waste.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 Equal contribution (co-first authors).
ISSN:	2405-8440 2405-8440
DOI:	10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e30853