Institute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 20224, Taiwan; Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 20224, Taiwan.
Institute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 20224, Taiwan; Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 20224, Taiwan.
Mar Pollut Bull. 2021 Nov;172:112808. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112808. Epub 2021 Aug 10.
Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous in oceans. Their transboundary transport and fate have aroused global attention. Taiwan is located close to the western boundary current-Kuroshio, is an excellent location to study of MP mobility in the global current and Pacific Garbage Patch. This study is the first investigation to understand the microplastic contamination from Taiwan to the Kuroshio. MP concentrations in the area varied from N.D. to 0.15 items m, with an average concentration of 0.05 ± 0.03 items m. The majority of MPs were polypropylene, polyethylene, polyethylene and terephthalate. We found two MP hotspots near the coastal zone. One additional hotspot was also identified in the "pristine" Kuroshio suggesting rivers and local currents may play critical roles in transporting or injecting MPs from Taiwan into the North Pacific Gyre. These findings suggest that marine environments are altered by anthropogenic disposal and provide needed data for modelling and prediction of MPs.
微塑料（MPs）在海洋中无处不在。它们的跨境运输和命运引起了全球关注。台湾位于西边界流-黑潮附近，是研究全球海流和太平洋垃圾带中 MP 迁移的绝佳地点。本研究首次调查了从台湾到黑潮的微塑料污染情况。该地区的 MP 浓度范围为 N.D. 至 0.15 个/米，平均浓度为 0.05±0.03 个/米。大多数 MPs 为聚丙烯、聚乙烯、聚酯和聚对苯二甲酸乙二醇酯。我们在近岸海域发现了两个 MP 热点。在“原始”黑潮中还发现了另一个热点，这表明河流和局部海流可能在将 MPs 从台湾输送或注入北太平洋垃圾带中发挥关键作用。这些发现表明，海洋环境受到人为处置的影响，并为 MPs 的建模和预测提供了所需的数据。
