Tracking marine debris in Northwest Spain: assessing wind influence with a Lagrangian transport model

Abstract

Marine debris is responsible for major problems in our oceans, causing serious environmental degradation, detrimental health effects and economic losses in sectors related to the marine environment. In this work, we examine how plastics released by the Ulla river at the estuary's extreme affect the transport, accumulation, and beaching of floating particles in the Ría de Arousa, an estuary on the northwest coast of the Iberian Peninsula, as a result of wind force. Using Lagrangian simulations of particle tracking under different wind drag coefficients (1 %, 3 % and 5 %), we evaluate the spatial and seasonal patterns of particle concentration, residence time and deposition on the coast. Our results show that wind plays a crucial role in modulating particle behavior. Low wind-driven conditions favor greater near-shore accumulation and longer residence times, especially in the northern and inner regions of the estuary. As wind influence increases, particle dispersion intensifies, leading to lower overall accumulation and weakening of correlations between river discharge and coastal deposition. Seasonal differences are also studied, with higher concentrations observed in the north during winter and in the south during summer.