Tuvalu is a remote Polynesian nation made up of three reef islands and six atolls. Home to fewer than 11,000 people, Tuvalu is 1,100 kilometers (680 miles) from its nearest neighbor in Fiji. Yet dispite its isolation and small population, new research shows that the ocean ecosystems around Tuvalu are polluted with microplastics.
A team of researchers collected 201 individual fish from 44 species around Funafuti Atoll, the capital of Tuvalu. They removed the gastrointestinal tracts of the fish and tested them for the presence of microplastics — plastic particles smaller than 5 millimeters (0.2 inches).
Of the 201 fish sampled, researchers found microplastics in 75 individuals (37.3%). Fish from more developed areas of the world have been found to contain much higher rates of pollution; one study from the U.S. West Coast found 99% of fish were polluted with tiny bits of plastic.
These microplastic particles often originate indirectly from the breakdown of plastic debris and directly from personal care products and industrial chemicals.
Frequently transported by rivers, once microplastics arrive in oceans, they easily disperse throughout ocean ecosystems and bioaccumulate in food webs. When fish ingest microplastics, the particles accumulate in their gastrointestinal systems where they can cause internal damage to organs and affect reproduction, behavior and metabolism, the study notes.
Scientists have found microplastic everywhere they’ve looked, Margaret Spring, chief science and conservation officer of the Monterey Bay Aquarium, not involved with the study, told Mongabay in an email.
“From the highest mountains and inland lakes and rivers to the ocean’s surface to the seafloor, as well as in our food and drinking water we are finding microplastics and nanoplastics,” Spring said.
Microplastics have already been found throughout human bodies, including in brains and placentas, raising serious concerns for human health. That’s a particular worry for South Pacific nations like Tuvalu, which depend on the sea for their diet.
Amanda Ford, a member of the research team, said in Science Daily, “While microplastic levels in Pacific fish are generally lower than in many industrialized regions, Pacific communities rely far more heavily on fish as a primary protein source.”
Small islands like Tuvalu are vulnerable in many ways.
“Small island states are uniquely and disproportionately affected by the endless flow of plastics and related pollution. They are also heavily reliant upon seafood for both sustenance and livelihoods. The discovery of microplastics in fish around Tuvalu confirms the urgency of the call to end plastic pollution, starting at the source,” Spring said.
Banner Image: Funafuti Beach in Tuvalu. Image by Stefan Lins via Flckr. (CC BY 2.0.)
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