Plastic waste in all marine regions

Plastic waste is also found in the deep sea

05/01/2014

The littering of the seas is becoming increasingly critical. According to a recent study involving the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) in Bremerhaven, significant amounts of waste are found in all European seas today. All of Europe's marine regions were seriously polluted. The researchers warn of possible consequences for the marine inhabitants and finally for us humans.

The research team led by Christopher Pham from the University of the Azores has compiled comprehensive data on how much garbage is in the European seas. With the help of bottom trawls, video recordings and photos, the scientists from 15 different European research institutions examined the waste deposits in 32 different marine areas in the Northeast Atlantic, the Arctic Ocean and the Mediterranean. In each of the investigated regions, researchers said they found what they were looking for - „from coastal areas down to the deep sea.“ Their results are in the trade magazine „PLOS ONE“ released.

Garbage down to 4500 meters
The marine biologist Dr. Melanie Bergmann from the Alfred Wegener Institute emphasized that she „very surprised“ was, „to see how far our garbage has spread in the oceans.“ Using 588 video recordings and trawl samples, the researchers were able to detect garbage in all marine regions studied - „near the coast, on the continental shelf, underwater mountains and down to the deep sea“ (Depth of 4500 meters). Most of the garbage is „near densely populated metropolitan areas - and in deep-sea trenches“ has been found, the AWI continues. The deep-sea ravines often form the link between shallow coastal waters and the deep sea. Thus, the garbage drives through them from the coasts into the deeper, deeper layers of water. „Even in remote areas like the Arctic or Mid-Atlantic Ridge, we have found garbage“, explained Dr. Melanie Bergmann and supplements, „that by now almost every camera or trawl deployment in the deep sea can see garbage.“

Threatening ecological problems due to microplastic particles
The scientists discovered, among other things, increasingly stray fishing gear and nets, glass bottles and metal, but by far „The most common type of waste was plastic“, so the statement of the first author Christopher Pham. According to the AWI, plastic was detected on almost half of all video recordings and in almost all trawl samples. According to the researchers, the larger plastic pieces found also suggest the presence of microplastic particles, as the plastic decomposes into smaller and smaller parts over the years. „With these millimeter-sized particles, the ecological problems are probably getting started“, stressed the marine biologist Dr. Melanie Bergmannn. Because the micro plastic offers „not only a welcome surface for various fat-loving toxins, it can also accumulate within the food chain“, Bergmann continues. For example, some North Sea fish and lobsters have already been microplastic detected. This is probably just the tip of the iceberg.

Plastic waste particularly durable
So far, according to the researchers, it has not been conclusively clarified how the waste is distributed across the oceans. A key role in their view play the „Ocean currents, topographic conditions but also the increasing shipping traffic.“ Due to its longevity and its low weight, it is above all plastic that can be transported by ocean currents over long distances. According to the information provided by the AWI „In the Arctic, the decline in sea ice is likely to lead to more waste going to the far north.“The impact that garbage in the sea will have on the entire ecosystem and ultimately on us humans can only be guessed at up to now. Further comprehensive studies are needed, also to provide a scientific basis for the proposed Marine Strategy Framework Directive of the European Union. Because this is among other things „assess how current the European seas are and define what is a 'good state' of the oceans“, explained Dr. Melanie Bergmann. (Fp)

Picture: Peter von Bechen