Microplastics in coastal sediments of Ełckie Lake (Poland)

Plastics are materials with many properties that make them extremely popular in everyday life and various industries. Studies show that plastic debris is global pollution and widespread in virtually all ecosystems. This study aimed to assess the coastal sediments of Ełckie Lake in terms of the presence of microplastics. Samples of sediments (n = 37) from the coastal zone of Ełckie Lake were drawn from different areas, including urban, rural, and tourist locations, and beaches. After the coastal sediment samples taking, they were subjected to density separation, filtration, and visual evaluation using the Olympus BX63 fluorescent microscope. Particles were classified according to the category of visible characteristics of microplastics including size, shape and colour. The results of the study showed the presence of microplastics in 84% of the examined coastal sediment samples of Ełckie Lake. Fibres, flakes, granules, and foils (films) had found in 58%, 45%, 32%, and 13% of the samples that contained microplastic, respectively. The majority of the detected microplastic was 0.5–1 mm in size and black was the dominant colour. Spatial variability was perceived in microplastic concentrations, giving premises to the assumption of dependence between local human activity and the content of particles