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Monitoring plastic litter in the environment is critical to understanding the amount, sources, transport, fate, and environmental impact of this pollutant. However, few studies have monitored plastic litter on lakebeds which are potentially important environments for determining the fate and transport of plastic litter in freshwater basins. In this study, a self-contained underwater breathing apparatus was used for litter collection at the lakebed along five transects in Lake Tahoe, United States. Litter was brought to the surface and characterized by litter type. Plastic litter was subsampled, and polymer composition was determined using attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The average plastic litter from the lakebed for the five dive transects was 83 ± 49 items per kilometer. The top plastic litter categories were other plastic litter (plastic litter that did not fall in another category), followed by food containers, bottles <2 L, plastic bags, and toys. These results are in line with prior studies on submerged litter, and intervention approaches or ongoing education are needed. The six polymers most frequently detected in the subsamples were polyvinyl chloride, polystyrene/expanded polystyrene, polyethylene terephthalate/polyester, polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyamide. These observations reflect global plastic production and microplastic studies from lake surface water and sediments. We found that some litter subcategories were primarily comprised of a single polymer type, therefore, in studies where the polymer type cannot be measured but litter is categorized, these results could provide an estimate of the total polymer composition for select litter categories.
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Anthropogenic Debris Concentrations in the Beargrass Creek Watershed, Louisville, Kentucky: Litter Amounts, Composition, and Potential Conservation Solutions
Beargrass Creek is one of the largest watersheds in Louisville, Kentucky, draining over 60 square miles within Louisville and outpouring into the Ohio River. The creek consists of three branches – the South, Middle, and Muddy forks – each flowing through a variety of residential and commercial areas as well as a multitude of parklands. Despite this creek’s prominence in the city, little research has been done documenting the concentration of anthropogenic debris within its watershed. This study documents man-made debris accumulation at 15 sites located within the Louisville metropolitan area as a continuation of the work conducted by the University of Louisville Aqlan Lab in summer of 2022. The study assesses the debris build-up within the creek and establishes debris patterns in hopes of diminishing future buildups and improving conditions within this Louisville watershed. The amount of litter increased from June 2022 to July 2023, and litter amounts also increased during the summer of 2023. Middle Fork contained the highest total amount of debris, closely followed by South Fork. Plastic bottles, bags, and fragments made up over 70% of total litter, with glass (11%) and lumber (4%) being the second and third highest categories. The most common litter items were plastic bags, foam fragments, and food wrappers. Further analysis is still needed to investigate the magnitude, character, and sources of debris in Beargrass Creek across different seasons.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2152282
- PAR ID:
- 10601062
- Publisher / Repository:
- BioOne Digital Library
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Journal of the Kentucky Academy of Science
- Volume:
- 85
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 1098-7096
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
-
Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.3101/KYAC-85-01-04
