Plastic Resin
Pellets as a Transport Medium
for Toxic Chemicals in the Marine Environment
Environ. Sci.
Technol. 2001, 35, 318-324
Yukie Mato, —
Tomohik Isobe, — Hideshige Takada,* ,— Haruyuki Kahnehiro,¦ Chiyoko
Ohtake,Š
and Tsuguchika Kaminuma Š
Faculty of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture & Technology,
Fuchu, Tokyo 183-8509, Japan, Tokyo University of Fisheries, Minatoku, Tokyo
108-8477, Japan, and Division of Chem-Bio Informatics, National Institute of
Health Sciences, 1-18-1 Kamiyoga Setagayaku, Tokyo 158-8501, Japan
* Corresponding author phone: +81-42-367-5825; fax: +81-42-
360-8264; e-mail: shige@cc.tuat.ac.jp,
— Tokyo University of Agriculture & Technology, ¦ Tokyo University of
Fisheries, Š National Institute of Health Sciences.
Plastic resin pellets (small granules 0.1-0.5 centimeters in diameter) are
widely distributed in the ocean all over the world. They are an industrial raw
material for the plastic industry and are unintentionally released to the
environment both during manufacturing and transport. They are sometimes ingested
by seabirds and other marine organisms, and their adverse effects on organisms
are a concern.
In the present study, PCBs, DDE, and nonylphenols (NP) were detected in
polypropylene (PP) resin pellets collected from four Japanese coasts.
Concentrations of PCBs (4- 117 ng/g), DDE (0.16-3.1 ng/g), and NP (0.13-16 µg/g)
varied among the sampling sites. These concentrations were comparable to those
for suspended particles and bottom sediments collected from the same area as the
pellets. Field adsorption experiments using PP virgin pellets demonstrated
significant and steady increase in PCBs and DDE concentrations throughout the
six-day experiment, indicating that the source of PCBs and DDE is ambient
seawater and that adsorption to pellet surfaces is the mechanism of enrichment.
The major source of NP in the marine PP resin pellets was thought to be plastic
additives and/or their degradation products. Comparison of PCBs and DDE
concentrations in marine PP resin pellets with those in seawater suggests their
high degree of accumulation (apparent adsorption coefficient: 105 -106
). The high accumulation potential suggests that plastic resin pellets serve as
both a transport medium and a potential source of toxic chemicals in the marine
environment.
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