Xinhua News Agency "Snow Dragon" January 26 (reporter Bai Guolong) is "Snow Dragon" on board the ocean research mission of China's 34th Antarctic expedition team recently found polypropylene microplastics in the Antarctic Davis Sea. This is the first time that a Chinese research team has found such microplastics in this area. Zhang Shoufeng, a member of the expedition and an assistant researcher at the National Marine Environmental Monitoring Center, told reporters that the Snow Dragon collected microplastic samples in the Davis Sea in Antarctica on December 26, 2017. The expedition team used the "Fourier transform microinfrared spectrometer" for several days to analyze and identify, and finally confirmed that the two visible blue sheets in the sample were polypropylene microplastics.

Zhang said that Marine microplastics are plastic waste less than 5 millimeters in size in the Marine environment. The polypropylene plastic found this time is mostly used in daily food packaging. Because microplastics do not degrade easily in the Marine environment and are easily ingested by Marine organisms, they pose a threat to Marine ecosystems and may potentially affect humans through the food chain.

Xuelong has been sampling Marine microplastics since November 19, 2017, and has obtained a total of 35 samples so far, covering the Ross Sea, Davis Sea, Pryze Bay and other waters in Antarctica.

Experts said that the Antarctic expedition carried out Marine microplastic sampling work, the samples obtained are very precious. The analysis and research of the samples will help China understand the type, quantity, particle size and distribution of microplastics in the Antarctic sea, which is of great significance to the protection of the ecological environment in Antarctica. It also demonstrates China's determination to control microplastic pollution and actively participate in solving international hot environmental issues, and its image as a responsible major country.

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