First evidence of microplastic pollution in the surface water of Malaysian Marine Park islands, South China Sea during COVID-19

Yusof KMKK 1 , Anuar ST 2 , Mohamad Y 3 , Jaafar M 4 , Mohamad N 5 , Bachok Z 6 Show all authors , Mohamad N 7 , Ibrahim YS 8

Affiliations 

  • 1 Microplastic Research Interest Group (MRIG), Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia. Electronic address: kukausar@umt.edu.my
  • 2 Microplastic Research Interest Group (MRIG), Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia. Electronic address: sabiqahanuar@umt.edu.my
  • 3 Microplastic Research Interest Group (MRIG), Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia. Electronic address: yuzwanm@umt.edu.my
  • 4 Microplastic Research Interest Group (MRIG), Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia. Electronic address: maisarah@umt.edu.my
  • 5 Microplastic Research Interest Group (MRIG), Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia. Electronic address: noorlin@umt.edu.my
  • 6 Institute of Oceanography and Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia. Electronic address: zainudinb@umt.edu.my
  • 7 Fisheries Research Institute, 11960, Batu Maung, Penang, Malaysia. Electronic address: najihah@dof.gov.my
  • 8 Microplastic Research Interest Group (MRIG), Faculty of Science and Marine Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia; Institute of Oceanography and Environment, Universiti Malaysia Terengganu, 21030, Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, Malaysia. Electronic address: yusofshuaib@umt.edu.my
Mar Pollut Bull, 2023 Sep;194(Pt B):115268.
PMID: 37451046 DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2023.115268

Abstract

Malaysia is bounded by the South China Sea with many islands that support species megadiversity and coral reef ecosystems. This study investigates the distribution of microplastics (MPs) in the surface water around the four marine park islands (Perhentian, Redang, Kapas, and Tenggol) during COVID-19. The global pandemic has reset human activities, impacting the environment while possibly reducing anthropogenic contributions of microplastic pollution near the South China Sea islands. It was found that Pulau Perhentian recorded the most abundance of MPs (588.33 ± 111.77 items/L), followed by Pulau Redang (314.67 ± 58.08 items/L), Pulau Kapas (359.8 ± 87.70 items/L) and Pulau Tenggol (294.33 ± 101.64 items/L). Kruskal-Wallis analysis indicates a significant difference in total MPs abundance between islands. There are moderate correlations between salinity, pH, temperature and MPs variability. Among these parameters, only temperature is significant (p 

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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