Investigation of Microplastic Accumulation in Water and Sediment Environments Originating from Cage Fish Farming in Ildır Bay (Aegean Sea)

Project no. 32649 · Status: Kapanmış (Yayın bekleniyor) · 2024

Summary

<p class="ql-align-justify"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">The&nbsp;rapid&nbsp;increase&nbsp;in&nbsp;plastic&nbsp;use&nbsp;has&nbsp;made&nbsp;plastic&nbsp;pollution&nbsp;a&nbsp;major&nbsp;environmental&nbsp;problem&nbsp;on&nbsp;a&nbsp;global&nbsp;scale.&nbsp;Microplastics,&nbsp;which&nbsp;are&nbsp;formed&nbsp;through&nbsp;the&nbsp;fragmentation&nbsp;of&nbsp;plastic&nbsp;waste&nbsp;by&nbsp;environmental&nbsp;processes,&nbsp;are&nbsp;widely&nbsp;detected&nbsp;in&nbsp;marine&nbsp;ecosystems&nbsp;and&nbsp;pose&nbsp;ecological&nbsp;risks&nbsp;to&nbsp;marine&nbsp;organisms.&nbsp;Although&nbsp;a&nbsp;substantial&nbsp;proportion&nbsp;of&nbsp;microplastics&nbsp;originates&nbsp;from&nbsp;land-based&nbsp;sources&nbsp;and&nbsp;is&nbsp;transported&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;marine&nbsp;environment,&nbsp;marine&nbsp;activities&nbsp;such&nbsp;as&nbsp;fisheries,&nbsp;shipping,&nbsp;and&nbsp;aquaculture&nbsp;also&nbsp;contribute&nbsp;significantly&nbsp;to&nbsp;this&nbsp;pollution.&nbsp;Despite&nbsp;the&nbsp;rapid&nbsp;increase&nbsp;in&nbsp;studies&nbsp;investigating&nbsp;microplastic&nbsp;pollution&nbsp;in&nbsp;marine&nbsp;environments&nbsp;in&nbsp;recent&nbsp;years,&nbsp;research&nbsp;focusing&nbsp;on&nbsp;microplastic&nbsp;pollution&nbsp;originating&nbsp;from&nbsp;aquaculture&nbsp;activities&nbsp;remains&nbsp;limited&nbsp;worldwide.Within&nbsp;the&nbsp;scope&nbsp;of&nbsp;this&nbsp;project,&nbsp;microplastic&nbsp;pollution&nbsp;associated&nbsp;with&nbsp;marine&nbsp;fish&nbsp;farming&nbsp;facilities&nbsp;was&nbsp;comprehensively&nbsp;investigated&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;first&nbsp;time&nbsp;in&nbsp;Türkiye.&nbsp;Water&nbsp;and&nbsp;sediment&nbsp;samples&nbsp;collected&nbsp;from&nbsp;marine&nbsp;fish&nbsp;farming&nbsp;areas&nbsp;were&nbsp;analyzed&nbsp;to&nbsp;determine&nbsp;the&nbsp;abundance&nbsp;of&nbsp;microplastics,&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;recovered&nbsp;particles&nbsp;were&nbsp;characterized&nbsp;according&nbsp;to&nbsp;their&nbsp;polymer&nbsp;type,&nbsp;color,&nbsp;and&nbsp;size.&nbsp;Overall,&nbsp;microplastic&nbsp;concentrations&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;surface&nbsp;waters&nbsp;of&nbsp;Ildır&nbsp;Bay&nbsp;ranged&nbsp;from&nbsp;10,686.7&nbsp;to&nbsp;22,413.76&nbsp;particles/km².&nbsp;Fourier&nbsp;Transform&nbsp;Infrared&nbsp;Spectroscopy&nbsp;(FTIR)&nbsp;analysis&nbsp;revealed&nbsp;that&nbsp;88%&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;analyzed&nbsp;particles&nbsp;were&nbsp;confirmed&nbsp;as&nbsp;plastic,&nbsp;with&nbsp;polyethylene&nbsp;being&nbsp;the&nbsp;dominant&nbsp;polymer&nbsp;type,&nbsp;accounting&nbsp;for&nbsp;43%&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;identified&nbsp;polymers.&nbsp;</span></p><p class="ql-align-justify"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">In&nbsp;conclusion,&nbsp;the&nbsp;results&nbsp;indicate&nbsp;that&nbsp;microplastic&nbsp;accumulation&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;surface&nbsp;waters&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;study&nbsp;area&nbsp;is&nbsp;considerable&nbsp;and&nbsp;that&nbsp;fish&nbsp;farming&nbsp;activities&nbsp;may&nbsp;represent&nbsp;one&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;important&nbsp;sources&nbsp;contributing&nbsp;to&nbsp;this&nbsp;pollution.&nbsp;The&nbsp;findings&nbsp;of&nbsp;this&nbsp;project&nbsp;are&nbsp;expected&nbsp;to&nbsp;provide&nbsp;a&nbsp;scientific&nbsp;basis&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;development&nbsp;of&nbsp;sustainable&nbsp;aquaculture&nbsp;practices,&nbsp;the&nbsp;protection&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;marine&nbsp;environment,&nbsp;and&nbsp;future&nbsp;national&nbsp;and&nbsp;international&nbsp;research&nbsp;and&nbsp;environmental&nbsp;monitoring&nbsp;programs.</span></p><p></p>

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