Beijing, January 15 (Reporter Sun Zifa) Springer Nature's open access academic journal Scientific Reports published a new environmental research paper pointed out that underwater seagrass can capture and extract Marine plastic waste, bring it to the shore, thereby helping to remove plastic waste in the ocean.

Previous research has shown that most of the plastic ends up at the bottom of the sea, but some of it washes back to shore, although it is not clear why this happens, the paper said. Seagrasses, which are widely distributed in shallow waters, can help trap and entrest sediment particles from the seabed.

To assess the possible role of seagrassas in capturing and removing ocean plastic, corresponding author AnnaSanchez-Vidal of the University of Barcelona in Spain and colleagues, Measured plastic waste collected from seagrass litter on four beaches in Majorca, Spain, between 2018 and 2019. Mallorca has large areas of seagrass and large amounts of plastic near the shore. Of 42 samples of loose seagrass leaves, plastic waste was found in 50% of the samples; Out of 198 seagrass fiber balls, also known as chlorellae or Neptune balls, 17 percent had this plastic waste wrapped around them. A maximum of 613 and 1,470 pieces of plastic per kilogram were found in loose leaves and seaweed balls, respectively.

Using this data and estimates of Mediterranean seaweed fibre production, the authors suggest that Neptune balls in Mediterranean pastures could catch up to 867 million plastics a year, although the amount of plastic that makes it to shore and the fate of what washes up is unknown.

The results of this study suggest that seagrass may help fight Marine plastic pollution, the authors conclude. Previous studies have found that Mediterranean seagrass areas have declined by 13 to 50 percent since 1960, and the authors warn that seagrass conservation should be a priority. (Finishing)

Plastic Industry Video