Monitoramento e análise sobre o padrão de acúmulo de resíduos sólidos marinhos em praias

Abstract

The anthropogenic litter generation and accumulation in marine environments is already a reality faced all over the planet and this pollution has generated countless consequences. Identifying possible patterns in marine debris stock contributes to describing the degree of local pollution and provides important data to discuss management strategies and outline new studies. Using NOAA's marine debris shoreline survey protocol, this work sought to understand the litter accumulation patterns at four beaches of the Rio Grande do Norte State (Redinha, Mãe Luiza, Pirangi do Norte, and Búzios) throughout the year 2021, through monthly sampling. Additionally, this study intended to test hypotheses such as 1) plastic is the most abundant material at all assessed beaches due to its high production, use, and disposal; and 2) there is a temporal variation in the amount of marine residues, with the rainy season being the one with the highest level of pollution. After counting and classifying the residues found on the beaches evaluated (plastic, metal, glass, rubber, processed wood, and clothes/fabric) our results proved that plastic was the most abundant material, with a proportion greater than 85% at all collection points. Each beach presented a different profile regarding the waste found, which may be related to aspects of urbanization and waste management policy. There was no difference in the amount of waste between the dry and wet seasons, however, large-scale pollution events were recorded in this study, and results like this reveal the importance of monitoring and understanding patterns of waste accumulation to contribute to fighting marine pollution.