Abstract
Physical-chemical and biologicaldiversity of streams are influenced by the land use in their watersheds. Plastics currently make up the most important waste asset, representing an important part of the transported and accumulated material in water courses. This work analyzes the consumption of plastics debris by the fish communities in streams with two contrasting types of land use. We worked with threestreams impacted by urbanization and threeby extensive ranching. The stomach and intestinal contents of 309 individuals of 29 species were analyzed, by a modified alkaline digestion, and observed under a stereo microscope with polarized light. A total of 373 plastic itemswere found, of which the majority corresponded to fibers (318). A significant difference was found between the percentage of individuals that consumed plastic debrisbetween both systems (51.6% in ranchers and 76.6% in urban, p = 0.014 Mood’s Median), but no difference was found in the average ingested per individual. This study establishes the first baseline on plastic debris consumption by fish in Uruguayan streams, showing the extent of the plastic and microplastic pollution problem. Although there are differences between the analyzed sites, we also observed significant contamination in streams far from urbanization.
Highlights
Rivers and streams reflect their geographic location, geomorphological and natural characteristics, and the human activities carried out in their hydrographic basins [1]
Being the first antecedent in Uruguay, the obtained results obtained from this research are of the first antecedent in Uruguay, the results from this research are of utmost utmost importance due to the limited information available on the incidence of microplastics at the fish community levelin streams at international level
Importance due to the limited information available on the incidence of microplastics at the fish community levelin streams at international level
Summary
Rivers and streams reflect their geographic location, geomorphological and natural characteristics, and the human activities carried out in their hydrographic basins [1]. The different land uses, such as urbanization, industries and the various agricultural activities that may be developed in a watershed, condition and determine the wastes and pollutants that eventually end up reaching freshwater systems [2]. In the case of plastic wastes, their entry into inland water systems can occur through several paths, both from point or diffuse sources. Among the former we may include: (i) improper disposal direct to watercourses of their vicinity as a result of bad practices at users level [3,4], (ii) domestic wastewater (including existing treatment plants in the case of certain MPs for domestic use), (iii) failures in waste management procedures in recycling plants, industries and agricultural activities. Distance from population centers, industries and landfills certainly seem to be a determining factor increasing plastic waste inputs to freshwater systems [5,8,9]
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