Microplastic abundance in the Thames River during the New Year period
Article
Devereux, R., Westhead, E., Jayaratne, R. and Newport, D. 2022. Microplastic abundance in the Thames River during the New Year period. Marine Pollution Bulletin. 177 (Art. 113534). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113534
Authors | Devereux, R., Westhead, E., Jayaratne, R. and Newport, D. |
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Abstract | Microplastic pollution is widely studied; however, research into the effects of large-scale firework displays and the impact on surrounding waterways appears to be lacking. This study is potentially the first to look at microplastic abundance in rivers after a major firework event. To assess the impact of the 2020 New Year's firework display in London, a 3 litre water sample was collected over nine consecutive days at Westminster on the River Thames. A total of 2760 pieces of microplastics (99% fibres) were counted using light microscopy, and further analysis was performed on representative plastic samples (354) using Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR). Whilst anthropogenic microfibres made up 11%, most microplastic identified (13.3%) were polychloroprene. This study demonstrates the occurrence of a short-term influx of microplastics in the River Thames following the New Year fireworks, which will have an additional detrimental impact on the ecology and aquaculture of the river and neighbouring waterways. |
Keywords | Microplastics; River Thames; Microfibres; New Year fireworks |
Journal | Marine Pollution Bulletin |
Journal citation | 177 (Art. 113534) |
ISSN | 0025-326X |
Year | 2022 |
Publisher | Elsevier |
Accepted author manuscript | License File Access Level Repository staff only |
Publisher's version | License File Access Level Anyone |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113534 |
Publication dates | |
Online | 15 Mar 2022 |
Publication process dates | |
Accepted | 01 Mar 2022 |
Deposited | 05 Apr 2022 |
Copyright holder | © 2022 The Authors |
https://repository.uel.ac.uk/item/8q72q
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