MICROPLÁSTICOS EM UM ESTUÁRIO URBANIZADO DA MARGEM EQUATORIAL BRASILEIRA: ANÁLISE DA CONTAMINAÇÃO EM PEIXES DE INTERESSE COMERCIAL, ÁGUA E SEDIMENTO NO RIO ANIL

Abstract

The proximity of estuaries to urban centers facilitates the release of an intense flow of plastic waste into these areas, resulting in adverse impacts on local ecosystems. When disposed of in the environment, plastic deteriorates into a variety of fragments, called microplastics (MP), which are dispersed throughout all environmental compartments in the region. In this sense, the incidence of contamination by MPs in samples of sediment (n = 8), water (n = 18) and samples of the gastrointestinal tract, muscle and gills of five species of commercially important fish collected in the Anil River Estuary (n = 22) was investigated. The abundance of MP was greater in sediment (1500 ± 493 items/kg) than in water (142 ± 20.2 items/L). The presence of MP was verified in all fish species. MP per gram (g) of tissue variem significantly among the species studied. It was observed that Sardinella brasiliensis presented a higher level of contamination in the gills (12.5 ± 8.79 MP g-1) and in the muscle (8.80 ± 10.1 MP g-1). Mugil curema and Genyatremus luteus exhibited a higher mean concentration in the TG 8.08 ± 2.92 MP g-1 and 9.79 ± 7.21 MP g-1, respectively. Red fragments were the most common type of MPs in all species and the dominant size of MPs was between 1 μm and 500 μm. The results show that MP pollution is reflected in the accumulation of these materials in the biotic (fish) and abiotic (sediment and water) components of the study area, reinforcing the need for additional investigations on MP in estuaries of the Equatorial Margin.