1. Distribution, characteristics, and human exposure to microplastics in mangroves within the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.
- Author
-
Yu L, Li R, Zhang Z, Wu H, Chai M, Zhu X, and Guo W
- Subjects
- Environmental Monitoring, Hong Kong, Humans, Macau, Plastics, Microplastics, Water Pollutants, Chemical analysis
- Abstract
In this study, three mangroves in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area- Qi'ao Island in Zhuhai, Nansha in Guangzhou, and Futian in Shenzhen-were selected for investigating the distribution of microplastics and their characteristics The average microplastic abundance in each descended in the order: Futian (1600 n/kg) > Nansha (1100 n/kg) > Qi'ao Island (440 n/kg), with values from the forest fringe being significantly higher than those in the forest interior. The microplastics were mainly fibers, 1-5 mm in size, and white/black in color; they consisted of polypropylene and polyethylene, with foam and polystyrene accounting for a high proportion in Nansha. The exposure of humans to microplastics in the Futian forest fringe reached 35.95 ng/d·kg; it was one order of magnitude higher than the exposures in Qi'ao Island and Nansha. Furthermore, ingestion accounted for approximately 74% of the total exposure to the human body, dermal contact constitutes 25%, and sediment inhalation accounted for less than 1%., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)
- Published
- 2022
- Full Text
- View/download PDF