Assessment of the abundance of microplastics in surface waters, identification and characterization

Microplastic particles (MPs) are vectors of many toxic chemicals that are very harmful to all the aquatic organisms. This study aims to assess the contamination of aquatic environments by microplastics, resulting from the fragmentation of plastic waste or the intentional manufacturing of plastic microbeads. Within the framework of the Plastic Busters CAP project, a sampling campaign was carried out during the month of September 2023, a total of 6 stations are sampled along two radials, as mentioned in (fig.1), with spatial resolution from 1.5 to 6 miles. The first transect (T₁) is positioned at Ghar el Melh, facing Sidi Ali El Makki beach and the lagoon of Ghar El Meleh. The subsequent transect (T₂) is situated in Kalaat Al Andalouss, in front of Kalaat Al Andalouss lagoon. MPs concentrations varied between 20325.2032 and 104336.043 items/km², where the highest concentrations were recorded at station S₁ closest to the coast and corresponding to 104336,043 items/km².The analysis showed that the most dominant microplastic particles size varied between 1 and 2.5 mm in the both radials, with a frequent abundance of film form particles and white color. The identification of the polymer type by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy-Attenuated Total Reflectance (FTIR-ATR) showed that the most dominant polymer was high-density polyethylene (HDPE) at all the stations analyzed.