Microplastics in Mediterranean coastal area: toxicity and impact for the environment and human health

Abstract

The so-called marine litter, and in particular microplastics (MPs) and nanoplastics (NPs), are ubiquitously distributed and recognised as an emerging risk for the environment and human health. It is known that marine environments are one of the most impacted areas and among them; coastal zones are the most contaminated ones. They are subjected to population pressure, tourism, harbours, desalination plants, marine traffic and fish farms.

This review is focused on the Mediterranean Sea, currently considered one hot spot of microplastics pollution in the world, as a consequence of the high number of plastic marine litter generating activities and its characteristic morphology of semi-enclosed sea. MPs and NPs have been detected not only in surface water and water columns but also in sediments, deep seafloor, and biota including fish and seafood for human consumption. Because of this, different European legislation initiatives have been launched during the last years in order to prevent MPs and NPs contamination and to face derived problems. Finally, this review summarises the main problems and shortcomings associated to MPs and NPs analyses such as their identification and quantification or the necessity of standardised protocols.