Macroplastic and microplastic contamination assessment of a tropical river (Saigon River, Vietnam) transversed by a developing megacity,

Environmental Pollution, Volume 236, May 2018, Pages 661-671, ISSN 0269-7491,

Abstract:
Both macroplastic and microplastic contamination levels were assessed for the first time in
a tropical river estuary system, i.e. the Saigon River, that traverses a developing South East Asian
megacity, i.e. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
The analysis of floating debris collected daily on the Nhieu Loc – Thi Nghe canal
by the municipal waste management service shows that the plastic mass percentage
represents 11–43%, and the land-based plastic debris entering the river was estimated from 0.96
to 19.91 g inhabitant−1 d−1, namely 350 to 7270 g inhabitant−1 yr−1. Microplastics were
assessed in the Saigon River and in four urban canals by sampling bulk water for anthropogenic
fiber analysis and 300 μm mesh size plankton net exposition for fragment analysis.
Fibers and fragments are highly concentrated in this system, respectively 172,000 to 519,000
items m−3 and 10 to 223 items m−3. They were found in various colors and shapes with smallest
size and surface classes being predominant.
The macroplastics and fragments were mainly made of polyethylene and polypropylene while
the anthropogenic fibers were mainly made of polyester.
The relation between macroplastic and microplastic concentrations, waste management, population
density and water treatment are further discussed.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1hmXPx5_npIArW3aIdwwrh8nabmas74d2
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.02.005.
(https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0269749117330579)

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