In 2010 the GESAMP (The Joint Group of Experts on the Scientific Aspects of Marine Environmental Protection) met at UNESCO-IOC in Paris to discuss new and emerging issues affecting the marine ecosystem: the effect of microplastics was chiefly discussed.
Participants represented the scientific community, the plastics industry, policy makers and NGOs, creating a forum from which to inform GESAMP, who would in turn inform other agencies such as the FAO, IAEA, UN and UNDP.
Two principle sources of microplastic were offered:
1) Plastic resin pellets from plastics manufacturing, abrasives and cosmetics
2) Plastic fragments from the deterioration of larger pieces, mainly litter
Knowledge of the distribution of microplastics is currently emerging in scientific literature. Some recent articles discuss the characteristics and behaviour of various sized plastic particles and the role of said variables in determining the pollutants fate.
These will be explored in later blogs
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