Seasonal and geographic variations of marine litter: A comprehensive study from the island of Cyprus
Published in: Marine Pollution Bulletin, 177 : 113495
Abstract
Twenty beaches located around the island of Cyprus, in the eastern Mediterranean, were identified as monitoring
sites. They were monitored over four monitoring sessions from January to September 2021 to assess marine litter
amounts, categories, and spatiotemporal distribution. A total of 42,499 marine litter items were collected. The
average marine litter density was 0.19 items/m2. Most of the collected items were plastics, with single-use
plastics being ubiquitous. Plastic fragments >2.5 cm made a significant proportion of the plastic litter
collected, particularly in the northern coasts of the island. Cigarette butts were abundant on touristic beaches,
especially in the tourism period. The study identifies significant temporal and spatial variations in the abundance
and distribution of marine litter, as well as variations related to waste management or lack thereof.
Accessible via: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.113495