Daily accumulation rates of marine litter on the shores of Rapa Nui (Easter Island) in the South Pacific Ocean.

Autor: Thiel M; Facultad Ciencias del Mar, Universidad Católica del Norte, Larrondo 1281, Coquimbo, Chile; Millennium Nucleus Ecology and Sustainable Management of Oceanic Island (ESMOI), Coquimbo, Chile; Centro de Estudios Avanzados en Zonas Áridas (CEAZA), Coquimbo, Chile. Electronic address: thiel@ucn.cl., Lorca BB; Centro de Buceo Tortuga, Hanga Piko, Rapa Nui, Chile., Bravo L; Facultad Ciencias del Mar, Universidad Católica del Norte, Larrondo 1281, Coquimbo, Chile; Millennium Nucleus Ecology and Sustainable Management of Oceanic Island (ESMOI), Coquimbo, Chile., Hinojosa IA; Millennium Nucleus Ecology and Sustainable Management of Oceanic Island (ESMOI), Coquimbo, Chile; Departamento de Ecología, Facultad de Ciencias, y Centro de Investigación en Biodiversidad y Ambientes Sustentables (CIBAS), Universidad Católica de la Santísima Concepción, Chile., Meneses HZ; Municipalidad de Rapa Nui, Hanga Roa, Rapa Nui, Chile.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: Marine pollution bulletin [Mar Pollut Bull] 2021 Aug; Vol. 169, pp. 112535. Date of Electronic Publication: 2021 Jun 10.
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2021.112535
Abstrakt: Large amounts of floating litter accumulate in the subtropical gyres, and the shorelines of oceanic islands in the vicinity of these accumulation zones receive large amounts of litter. The dynamics of marine litter arrival were evaluated on a small pocket beach on Rapa Nui (Easter Island) between November 2016 and June 2017 over a total time period of 190 days. Plastics dominated the stranded litter, with the majority of the items showing indications to come from the high seas fisheries operating in the South Pacific. Litter accumulation rates varied between 0 and 1.90 items m -1  day -1 , and were highest following days of strong winds from northern directions. The results indicate that the shores of Rapa Nui are exposed to continuous input of plastic litter from the contaminated waters of the subtropical gyre, which is intensified during strong onshore winds.
(Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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