Anthropogenic “Litter” and macrophyte detritus in the deep Northern Gulf of Mexico

• Published in: Marine pollution bulletin 2012-05, Vol.64 (5), p.966-973
• Main Authors: Wei, Chih-Lin, Rowe, Gilbert T., Nunnally, Clifton C., Wicksten, Mary K.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anthropogenic waste; cans; canyons; continental shelf; Deep sea; Environmental Monitoring - methods; Humans; international agreements; Macrophyte debris; macrophytes; Marine; Mexico; Mississippi Canyon; Northern Gulf of Mexico; Oceans and Seas; Plants; plastics; Sargassum; Seawater - chemistry; shipping; ships; surveys; topography; toxicity; Waste Products - analysis; Waste Products - statistics & numerical data; Water Pollutants - analysis; water pollution; Water Pollution - statistics & numerical data
• ISSN: 0025-326X; 1879-3363
• DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2012.02.015

► We examined distribution of litter and plant debris in the deep N Gulf of Mexico. ► Litter was encountered more frequently in the eastern than in the western GoM. ► Land-derived plant debris was primarily within the head of the Mississippi Canyon. ► Ocean-derived plant material was spread evenly throughout the NE GoM. ► The Mississippi Canyon was a focal point for litter. A deep-sea trawl survey of the Northern Gulf of Mexico has documented the abundance and diversity of human-generated litter and natural detrital plant material, from the outer margin of the continental shelf out to the Sigsbee abyssal plain. Plastics were the most frequently encountered type of material. Litter and debris were encountered more frequently in the eastern than in the western GoM. Land-derived plant material was located primarily within the head of the Mississippi Canyon, whereas ocean-derived plant material was spread evenly throughout the NE GoM. Human discards were principally from ships offshore. Some of the material was contained in metal cans that sank to the sea floor, probably in order to conform to international agreements that prohibit disposal of toxic material and plastics. The Mississippi Canyon was a focal point for litter, perhaps due to topography, currents or proximity to shipping lanes.