Accelerating microplastic contamination in 210Pb dated sediment cores from an urbanized coastal lagoon (NW Mexico) since the 1990s

作者：Ana Carolina Ruíz-Fernández, Libia Hascibe Pérez-Bernal, Joan-Albert Sánchez-Cabeza, Gladys Valencia-Castañeda, Jorge Feliciano Ontiveros-Cuadras, Carlos Alonso‐Hernández · 发表于：The Science of The Total Environment · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.175613 · 被引用次数：14 · 研究领域：Microplastics and Plastic Pollution、Recycling and Waste Management Techniques

The ubiquity of microplastics (MP) across all ecosystems raises concerns about their potential harm to the environment and living organisms. Sediments are a MP sink, reflecting long-term accumulation and historical anthropogenic impacts. Three 210 Pb-dated sediment cores were used to understand the temporal variations of MP abundances (particles kg −1 ) and fluxes (particles m −2 year −1 ) within the past century in Estero de Urías Lagoon, an urbanized coastal lagoon in the Mexican Pacific. MP particles, extracted from sediments by density separation (saturated NaCl solution) were counted using a stereomicroscope, under visible and ultraviolet light on Nile red (NR) stained filters. The polymer composition was determined in ∼10 % of the suspected MP particles using Fourier Transform Infrared spectrometry. Fibers (66 to 89 % of the total particles) predominated over fragments (11 to 34 %). Before 1950, no MP particles were detected. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) was the prevalent synthetic polymer (up to 50 % of the particles), while semisynthetic cellulosic fibers were predominant, underscoring the broader scope of anthropogenic contamination. Suspected MP abundances (NR stained filters) were highest in the core collected at the innermost area, which was attributed to the lagoon's hydrodynamics, since current velocities decrease from the proximal to the distal area to the sea. From the regression between MP fluxes and time elapsed since sediments deposited, the cores showe...