Occurrence and distribution of microplastics in the beach sediment of Anday Beach, West Papua (Indonesia)

Abstract

In the last two decades, scientists have extensively studied microplastics (MPs), small plastic pieces less than five millimeters long, which can be harmful to our ocean and aquatic life. The MPs in the environment came from the tiny particles designed for commercial use, such as cosmetics. The other sources come from the breakdown of larger plastic items. In this study, the occurrence and distribution of MPs were investigated in the Anday Beach of West Papua (Indonesia). The sampling was conducted from March to May 2019 on Anday Beach. The abundance of MPs found were 0.28 to 1 n/kg for MPs (1-5 mm) and 1140.6 to 1997.6 n/kg for MPs (< 1 mm). The highest abundance of MPs found on Anday Beach was plastic film. We suggest doing a regular beach clean-up to ensure the continuous assessment of marine litter in the coastal areas and extend the sampling area in Papua to record the plastic pollution status in the Papua.