A temporal assessment of microplastics distribution on the beaches of three remote islands of the Yasawa archipelago, Fiji

Khadija Al Nabhani; Scott Salzman; Jeff Shimeta; Andrew Dansie; Graeme Allinson

doi:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114202

A temporal assessment of microplastics distribution on the beaches of three remote islands of the Yasawa archipelago, Fiji

Mar Pollut Bull. 2022 Dec;185(Pt A):114202. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114202. Epub 2022 Oct 18.

Authors

Khadija Al Nabhani¹, Scott Salzman², Jeff Shimeta³, Andrew Dansie⁴, Graeme Allinson³

Affiliations

¹ School of Science, STEM College, RMIT University, 124 La Trobe Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia; UNSW Water Research Centre, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, UNSW Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia. Electronic address: k.alnabhani@unsw.edu.au.
² Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics, Deakin University, PO Box 423, Warrnambool, VIC 3280, Australia.
³ School of Science, STEM College, RMIT University, 124 La Trobe Street, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia.
⁴ UNSW Water Research Centre, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, UNSW Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.

PMID: 36265426
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114202

Abstract

This is the first study that investigated the presence, distribution, and composition of microplastics, MPs (1-5 mm) on beaches in the Yasawa Islands, Fiji. A temporal assessment over three years on six beaches was undertaken to investigate different beach traits on MP abundance. Average MP concentration was 4.5 ± 11.1 MPs·m^-2 with significantly higher concentrations were found on east-facing beaches than west (p < 0.001), and higher on the storm line compared to the high tide line (p < 0.001). No difference was found between tourist and local beaches (p = 0.21). These results demonstrate the role of current-driven ocean transport of plastic pollution in this part of The South Pacific. ATR FT-IR analysis showed that across all sites 34 % of MPs were polypropylene (PP), 33 % polystyrene (PS), 25 % polyethylene (PE), and 8 % other polymer types. Further studies are needed to assess the potential impacts of MPs on Fiji's coral reefs and marine life.

Keywords: ATR FT-IR; Marine pollution; Microplastics; Pacific Island; Plastic polymers; South Pacific.

MeSH terms

Environmental Monitoring
Fiji
Microplastics*
Plastics / analysis
Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / analysis

Substances

Microplastics
Plastics
Water Pollutants, Chemical