Menu:

 

 

Volume 11, Issue 1 - March 2011

 

Download (1.492KB, PDF)

 

 

  • Abstract / Resumo
  • References / Bibliografia
  • Citations / Citações

Revista de Gestão Costeira Integrada
Volume 11, Número 1, Março 2011, Páginas 7-19

DOI: 10.5894/rgci181
* Submissão – 1 Janeiro 2010; Avaliação – 2 Março 2010; Recepção da versão revista – 29 Abril 2010; Disponibilização on-line – 14 Maio 2010

Trends in Marine Debris in the U.S. Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico 1996-2003 *

Tendências do Lixo Marinho no Caribe Norte-Americano e no Golfo do México 1996-2003

Christine A. Ribic @, 1, Seba B. Sheavly 2 & David J. Rugg 3


@ - Corresponding author: [email protected]
1 - U.S. Geological Survey, Wisconsin Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit, Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology, University of Wisconsin, 218 Russell Labs, 1630 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706 USA
2 - Sheavly Consultants, 3500 Virginia Beach Blvd., Suite 212, Virginia Beach, VA 23452 USA; [email protected]
3 - U.S. Forest Service, Northern Research Station, 1 Gifford Pinchot Drive, Madison, WI 53726 USA; [email protected]


ABSTRACT
Marine debris is a widespread and globally recognized problem. Sound information is necessary to understand the extent of the problem and to inform resource managers and policy makers about potential mitigation strategies. Although there are many short-term studies on marine debris, a longer-term perspective and the ability to compare among regions has heretofore been missing in the U.S. Caribbean and the Gulf of Mexico. We used data from a national beach monitoring program to evaluate and compare amounts, composition, and trends of indicator marine debris in the U.S. Caribbean (Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and the Gulf of Mexico from 1996 to 2003. Indicator items provided a standardized set that all surveys collected; each was assigned a probable source: ocean-based, land-based, or general-source. Probable ocean-based debris was related to activities such as recreational boating/fishing, commercial fishing and activities on oil/gas platforms. Probable land-based debris was related to land-based recreation and sewer systems. General-source debris represented plastic items that can come from either ocean- or land-based sources; these items were plastic bags, strapping bands, and plastic bottles (excluding motor oil containers). Debris loads were similar between the U.S. Caribbean and the western Gulf of Mexico; however, debris composition on U.S. Caribbean beaches was dominated by land-based indicators while the western Gulf of Mexico was dominated by ocean-based indicators. Beaches along the eastern Gulf of Mexico had the lowest counts of debris; composition was dominated by land-based indicators, similar to that found for the U.S. Caribbean. Debris loads on beaches in the Gulf of Mexico are likely affected by Gulf circulation patterns, reducing loads in the eastern Gulf and increasing loads in the western Gulf. Over the seven years of monitoring, we found a large linear decrease in total indicator debris, as well as all source categories, for the U.S. Caribbean. Lower magnitude decreases were seen in indicator debris along the eastern Gulf of Mexico. In contrast, only land-based indicators declined in the western Gulf of Mexico; total, ocean-based and general-source indicators remained unchanged. Decreases in land-based indicators were not related to human population in the coastal regions; human population increased in all regions over the time of the study. Significant monthly patterns for indicator debris were found only in the Gulf of Mexico; counts were highest during May through September, with peaks occurring in July. Inclement weather conditions before the time of the survey also accounted for some of the variation in the western Gulf of Mexico; fewer items were found when there were heavy seas or cold fronts in the weeks prior to the survey, while tropical storms (including hurricanes) increased the amount of debris. With the development around the globe of long-term monitoring programs using standardized methodology, there is the potential to help management at individual sites, as well as generate larger-scale perspectives (from regional to global) to inform decision makers. Incorporating mechanisms producing debris into marine debris programs would be a fruitful area for future research.

Keywords: marine debris, beaches, U.S. Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, trends, monitoring

RESUMO
O lixo marinho é reconhecido como um problema global e generalizado. Informações confiáveis são necessárias para entender a extensão desse problema, para informar gestores costeiros e elaboradores de políticas públicas sobre as estratégias de mitigação e para avaliar a eficiência das estratégias de mitigação implementadas. Embora existam muitos estudos de curto prazo sobre lixo marinho, ainda carecemos de estudos sobre a região norte-americana do Caribe e do Golfo do México que apresentem uma perspectiva de longo prazo e, talvez mais importante, que sejam capazes de fazer comparações entre regiões. A realização de amostragens para estimar a quantidade de lixo marinho que se acumula nas praias é uma técnica consagrada para avaliar o status da contaminação, não apenas das praias amostradas, mas também como um índice das condições das águas adjacentes. Nós usamos dados obtidos do Programa Nacional Norte-Americano de Monitoramento de Lixo Marinho, um programa de monitoramento praial, para avaliar e comparar a composição e as tendências de itens de lixo marinho indicadores na região norte-americana do Mar do Caribe (Porto Rico e Ilhas Virgens Norte-Americanas) e no Golfo do México, de 1996 a 2003. O programa de monitoramento mediu a acumulação líquida de itens indicadores em um trecho de 500 m de praia a cada 28 dias; sítios foram escolhidos aleatoriamente. O comprimento de 500 m garantiu que um número adequado de itens indicadores fosse coletado para a análise. Itens indicadores forneceram um conjunto de dados padronizados para todas as amostragens; para cada item foi atribuído uma fonte provável: fontes marinhas, fontes terrestres, ou fontes gerais. Itens cuja provável fonte seja marinha são aqueles relacionados com atividades como a náutica/pesca recreativa, pesca comercial e plataformas de óleo e gás. Itens cuja fonte provável seja terrestre foram relacionados a recreação terrestre e sistemas de esgotamento sanitário. Fontes gerais representaram itens plásticos que podem vir tanto de fontes marinhas como terrestres, tais como sacolas plásticas, fitas para embalagens e garrafas plásticas (excetuando-se os vasilhames para óleos lubrificantes para motores). Nós analisamos 344 amostragens em 6 locais na região caribenha, 570 amostragens em 8 locais na região leste do Golfo do México e 182 amostragens em 4 locais na região oeste do Golfo do México. Nós utilizamos contagens médias de cada local (número/500m) e proporções para testar diferenças regionais em termos de quantidade e de categoria de fonte, usando um modelo linear; a significância estatística foi avaliada ao nível de α = 0.10, conforme especificado no planejamento do programa de monitoramento. Nós usamos modelos aditivos generalizados para modelar eventuais padrões temporais, além de efeitos temporais intra-anuais e efeitos associados a eventos meteorológicos inclementes (eventos de alta energia). Nossa abordagem na modelagem dos dados permitiu acomodar possíveis relações não-lineares e foi ajustada para considerar padrões potenciais relacionados à variação temporal intra-anual e aos eventos meteorológicos inclementes, reduzindo a variabilidade e obtendo assim maior poder estatístico para testar padrões inter-anuais. Nós descobrimos que a carga de resíduos foi similar entre a região norte-americana do Caribe e a região ocidental do Golfo do México; contudo, a composição dos resíduos nas praias norte-americanas do Caribe foi dominada por itens indicadores de fontes terrestres, enquanto que a região ocidental do Golfo do México foi dominada por itens indicadores de fontes marinhas. Praias ao longo da costa leste do Golfo do México apresentaram as menores quantidades de lixo marinho; a composição foi dominada por indicadores de origem terrestre, similar ao que foi encontrado para o Caribe norte-americano. Cargas de resíduos nas praias do Golfo do México são provavelmente afetadas pelos padrões de circulação do Golfo, reduzindo as cargas na região leste do Golfo e aumentando as cargas na região oeste do Golfo. Para o Caribe norte-americano, nós identificamos uma grande redução na quantidade total de itens indicadores, assim como em cada categoria de origem, ao longo dos sete anos de monitoramento. Reduções de menor magnitude foram observadas para a quantidade total de itens indicadores ao longo da porção leste do Golfo do México. Em contraste, apenas os indicadores de origens terrestres diminuíram na costa oeste do Golfo do México; indicadores totais, de origens marinhas e de origens gerais permaneceram inalterados. Padrões mensais significativos dos itens indicadores foram encontrados apenas no Golfo do México; as contagens mais elevadas foram observadas durante maio a setembro, com picos em julho. Condições meteorológicas severas antes da data de amostragem também foram responsáveis por alguma variação na parte oeste do Golfo do México. Menos itens foram encontrados quando haviam ocorrido ressacas ou frentes frias na semana anterior a coleta, enquanto que tempestades tropicais (incluindo furacões) aumentaram a quantidade de lixo acumulado. As reduções dos itens indicadores de fontes terrestres não foram relacionadas à população humana nas regiões costeiras; a população humana aumentou em todas as regiões ao longo do período estudado. Mais investigação retrospectiva é necessária para determinar quais mecanismos podem ter causado essas reduções. Com o desenvolvimento ao redor do globo de programas de monitoramento de longo prazo baseados em metodologias consagradas, existe o potencial de se auxiliar o gerenciamento costeiro ao nível local, assim como a possibilidade de se gerar perspectivas de maior escala (regional e global) visando bem informar os tomadores de decisão. A incorporação de mecanismos que transformam resíduos em programas de lixo marinho seria uma área promissora para a pesquisa futura.

Palavras-chave: lixo marinho, praias, região norte-americana do Caribe, Golfo do México, tendências, monitoramento

 

Alkalay, R.,G.; Pasternak, G.; Zask, A. (2007) - Clean-cost index-a new approach for beach cleanliness assessment. Ocean and Coastal Management, 50:352-362. (DOI:10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2006.10.002)

Barnes, D.K.A.; Galgani, F.; Thompson, R.C.; Barlaz, M. (2009) - Accumulation and fragmentation of plastic debris in global environments. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, 364:1985-1998.
(DOI:10.1098/rstb.2008.0205)

Bravo, M.; Gallardo, M. de los Angeles; Luna-Jorquera, G.; Nunez, P.; Vasquez, N.; Thiel, M. (2009) – Anthropogenic debris on beaches in the SE Pacific (Chile): results of a national survey supported by volunteers. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 58(11):1718-17268.
(DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2009.06.017)

Burnham, K.P.; Anderson, D.R. (2002) - Model Selection and Multimodel Inference, a Practical Information-Theoretic Approach. 2nd ed. 488p., Springer-Verlag, New York, NY, USA. (ISBN-10: 0-387-95364-7).

Caribbean Fishery Management Council. (2010) – Fishing Regulations Guidelines for the U.S. Caribbean EEZ (Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) (Summary). http://www.caribbeanfmc.com/REGULATIONSPR-USVI/caribbean_
regulations.htm
(accessed in March 2010)

Cheshire, A.C.; Adler, E.; Barbière, J.; Cohen, Y.; Evans, S.; Jarayabhand, S.; Jeftic, L.; Jung, R.T.; Kinsey, S.; Kusui, E.T.; Lavine, I.; Manyara, P.; Oosterbaan, L.; Pereira, M.A.; Sheavly, S.; Tkalin, A.; Varadarajan, S.; Wenneker, B.; Westphalen, G. (2009) - UNEP/IOC Guidelines on Survey and Monitoring of Marine Litter. 117p., UNEP Regional Seas Reports and Studies, No. 186; IOC Technical Series No. 83, UNEP - United Nations Environment Programme / IOC - Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. ISBN: 9789280730272 http://www.unep.org/regionalseas/marinelitter/publications/docs/
Marine_Litter_Survey_and_Monitoring_Guidelines.pdf

Coe, J.M.; Rogers, D.B. (eds.) (1997) - Marine Debris. 432p., Springer-Verlag, New York, NY, USA. (ISBN-10: 0-387-94759-0).

Coe, J.M.; S. Andersson, S.; Rogers, D.B. (1997) - Marine debris in the Caribbean region. In: Coe, J. M. & Rogers, D. B. (eds.), Marine Debris, pp.25-33, Springer-Verlag, New York, NY, USA. (ISBN-10: 0-387-94759-0)

Criddle, K.R.; Amos, A.F.; Carroll, P.; Coe, J.M.; Donohue, M.J.; Harris, J.H.; Kim, K.; MacDonald, A.; Metcalf, K.; Rieser, A.; Young, N. M. (2009) - Tackling Marine Debris in the 21st Century. 206p., The National Academies Press, Washington, D.C., USA. (ISBN-13: 978-0-309-12697-7)

Cunningham, D.J.; Wilson, S.P. (2003) - Marine debris on beaches of the Greater Sydney region. Journal of Coastal Research, 19:421-430.

Dixon, T.R.; Dixon, T.J. (1981) - Marine litter surveillance. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 12(9):289-295. (DOI:10.1016/0025-326X(81)90078-3).

Edyvane, K.S.; Dalgetty, A.; Hone, P.W.; Higham, J.S.; Wace, N.M. (2004) - Long-term marine litter monitoring in the remote Great Australian Bight, South Australia. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 48(11-12):1060-1075.
(DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2003.12.012)

Escardó-Boomsma, J., O’Hara, K. & Ribic, C. A. (1995) – A national marine debris monitoring program, Volume I. 38p., Final report, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, Washington, D.C., USA.

Frost, A.; Cullen, M. (1997) - Marine debris on northern New South Wales beaches (Australia): sources and the role of beach usage. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 34(5):348-352. (DOI:10.1016/S0025-326X(96)00149-X)

Golik, A; Gertner, Y. (1992) - Litter on the Israeli coastline. Marine Environmental Research, 33(1):1-15. (DOI:10.1016/0141-1136(92)90002-4)

Gregory, M.R.; Ryan, P.G. (1997) - Pelagic plastics and other seaborne persistent synthetic debris: a review of Southern Hemisphere perspectives. In: Coe, J.M. & Rogers, D.B. (eds.), Marine Debris, pp. 49-66, Springer Verlag, New York, NY, USA. (ISBN-10: 0-387-94759-0)

Gyory, J.; Mariano, A. J.; Ryan, E.H. (2008a) - Ocean Surface Currents: The Loop Current. In: Surface Currents in the Atlantic Ocean. CIMAS – The Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies. http://oceancurrents.rsmas.miami.edu/atlantic/loop-current.html (accessed in December 2008)

Gyory, J.; Mariano, A. J.; Ryan, E.H. (2008b) - The Caribbean Current. In: Surface Currents in the Atlantic Ocean. CIMAS – The Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies. http://oceancurrents.rsmas.miami.edu/caribbean/caribbean.html (accessed in December 2008)

Ivar do Sul, J.A.; Costa, M. F. (2007) - Marine debris review for Latin America and the wider Caribbean region: from the 1970s until now, and where do we go from here? Marine Pollution Bulletin, 54:1087-1104.
(DOI:10.1017/j.marpolbul.2007.05.004)

Lecke-Mitchell, K.M.; Mullin, K. (1992) - Distribution and abundance of large floating plastic in the north-central Gulf of Mexico. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 24(12):598-601. (DOI:10.1016/0025-326X(92)90279-F)

Lettenmaier, D.P. (1978) - Design considerations for ambient stream quality monitoring. Water Resources Bulletin, 14:884-902.

Liffman, M.; Boogaerts, L. (1997) - Linkages between land-based sources of pollution and marine debris. In: Coe, J.M. & Rogers, D.B. (eds.), Marine Debris, pp.359-370, Springer-Verlag, New York, NY, USA. (ISBN-10: 0-387-94759-0)

Liffman, M.; Howard, B.; O’Hara, K.; Coe, J. (1997) - Strategies to reduce, control, and minimize land-source marine debris. In: Coe, J.M. & Rogers, D.B. (eds.), Marine Debris, pp.381-390, Springer-Verlag, New York, NY, USA. (ISBN-10: 0-387-94759-0)

Lindstedt, D.M.; Holmes, Jr., J. C. (1989) - Debris is not a cheese: litter in coastal Louisiana. In: Magoon, O.T., Converse, H., Miner, D., Tobin, L.T. & Clark, D. (eds.), Proceedings of the Sixth Symposium on Coastal and Ocean Management, volume 2, pp.1297-1310, American Society of Civil Engineers, New York, NY, USA.

Lovett, G.M.; Burns, D.A.; Driscoll, C.T.; Jenkins, J.C.; Mitchell, M.J.; Rustad, L.; Shanley, J.B.; Likens, G.E.; Haeuber, R. (2007) - Who needs environmental monitoring? Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 5:253-260.

Mariano, A.J.; Ryan, E.H.; Perkins, B.D.; Smithers, S. (1995) - The Mariano Global Surface Velocity Analysis 1.0. 55p., U.S. Coast Guard Technical Report, CG-D-34-95, National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA, USA.

Martinez-Ribes, L.; Basterretxea, G.; Palmer, M.; Tintore, J. (2007) - Origin and abundance of beach debris in the Balearic Islands. Scientia Marina, 71(2):305-314. (http://www.icm.csic.es/scimar/
index.php/secId/6/IdArt/3518/
)

Matos-Caraballo, M. (2004) – Job 3. Comprehensive Census of the Marine Fishery of Puerto Rico, 2002. Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources. Final Report to NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service. http://www.sefsc.noaa.gov/sedar/download/S14RD29 PR Census.pdf?id=DOCUMENT

Miller, J.E.; Baker, S.W.; Echols, D.L. (1995) - Marine debris point source investigation 1994 – 1995: Padre Island National Seashore. 40p., U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service Report, Corpus Christi, TX, USA.

Morishige, C.; Donohue, M.J.; Flint, E.; Swenson, C.; Woolaway, C. (2007) - Factors affecting marine debris deposition at French Frigate Shoals, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument, 1990-2006. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 54(8):1162-1169. (DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2007.04.014)

National Hurricane Center (2010) – Tropical cyclone climatology. NOAA / National Weather Service, National Centers for Environmental Prediction, National Hurricane Center, Miami, FL, USA. http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/pastprofile.shtml (accessed in March 2010)

National Marine Fisheries Service (2009) - Commercial fishery landings. NOAA Fisheries: Office of Science & Technology http://www.st.nmfs.noaa.gov/st1/commercial/index.html (accessed in October 2009)

National Weather Service (2009) – Annual NHC verification reports. NOAA / National Weather Service, National Centers for Environmental Prediction, National Hurricane Center, Miami, FL, USA
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/verification/verify3.shtml (accessed in December 2009)

NOAA Marine Debris Program (2009) - Gulf of Mexico marine debris project. http://gulfofmexico.marinedebris.noaa.gov/gom_mdp (accessed in November 2009).

R Development Core Team (2009) - R: A language and environment for statistical computing. version 2.9.0. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. (ISBN 3-900051-07-0). http://www.R-project.org (accessed in December 2009)

Rees, G.; Pond, K. (1995) - Marine litter monitoring programs – a review of methods with special reference to national surveys. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 30(2):103-108. (DOI:10.1016/0025-326X(94)00192-C)

Ribic, C.A.; Ganio, L. (1996) - Power analysis for beach surveys of marine debris. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 32(7):554-557. (DOI:10.1016/0025-326X(96)84575-9)

Ribic, C.A.; Dixon, T.R.; Vining, I. (1992) - Marine debris survey manual. NOAA Technical Report NMFS 108. 92p., U.S. Department of Commerce, National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA, USA.

Ribic, C.A.; Johnson, S.W.; Cole, C. A. (1997) - Distribution, type, accumulation, and source of marine debris in the United States, 1989-1993. In: Coe, J.M. & Rogers, D.B. (eds.), Marine Debris, pp.35-47, Springer-Verlag, New York, NY, USA. (ISBN-10: 0-387-94759-0)

Ribic, C.A.; Sheavly, S.B.; Rugg, D.J.; Erdmann, E.S. (2010) – Trends and drivers of marine debris on the Atlantic Coast of the United States 1997-2007. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 60(8):1231-1242. (DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2010.03.021)

Singh, J.G.; Xavier, B. (1997) - Land-based sources of marine debris and contamination of the coastal areas of the Caribbean Islands of St. Lucia, Dominica, and the British Virgin Islands. In: Coe, J.M. & Rogers, D.B. (eds.), Marine Debris, pp.371-380, Springer-Verlag, New York, NY, USA. (ISBN-10: 0-387-94759-0)

Silva, J.S.; Barbosa, S.C.T.; Costa, M.F. (2008) - Flag items as a tool for monitoring solid wastes from users on urban beaches. Journal of Coastal Research, 24:890-898. (DOI:10.2112/06-0695.1)

Silva-Iniguez, L.; Fischer, D.W. (2003) - Quantification and classification of marine litter on the municipal beach of Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 46(1):132-138. (DOI:10.1016/S0025-326X(02)00216-3)

Storrier, K.L.; McGlashan, D.J.; Bonellie, S.; Velander, K. (2007) - Beach litter deposition at a selection of beaches in the Firth of Forth, Scotland. Journal of Coastal Research, 23:813-822.

Thiel, M.; Haye, P.A. (2006) - The ecology of rafting in the marine environment. III. biogeographical and evolutionary consequences. Oceanography and Marine Biology: An Annual Review, 44:323-429.

Thornton, L.; Jackson, N.L. (1998) - Spatial and temporal variations in debris accumulation and composition on an estuarine shoreline, Cliffwood Beach, New Jersey USA. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 36(9):705-711. (DOI:10.1016/S0025-326X(98)00041-1)

Tudor, D.T.; Williams, A.T. (2004) – Development of a ‘matrix scoring technique’ to determine litter sources at a Bristol Channel beach. Journal of Coastal Conservation, 9:119-127.

Tudor, D.T.; Williams, A.T. (2008) – Important aspect of beach pollution to managers: Wales and the Bristol Channel, UK. Journal of Coastal Research, 24:735-745. (DOI:10.2112/06-0727.1)
UNEP (2009) - Marine Litter: A Global Challenge. 232p., UNEP - United Nations Environment Programme, Marine and Coastal Ecosystems Branch, Nairobi, Kenya. http://www.unep.org/regionalseas/
marinelitter/publications/docs/Marine_Litter_A_Global_Challenge.pdf

US Census Bureau (2009a) - Population estimates: county population estimates 1990 – 1999. http://www.census.gov/popest/
archives/1990s/CO-99-08.html
(accessed in March 2010)

US Census Bureau (2009b) - Population estimates: county population datasets 2000 – 2008. http://www.census.gov/popest/datasets.html (accessed in March 2010)

US Department of the Interior (2010) - National atlas of the United States. Printable maps: reference and outline maps of individual states. http://nationalatlas.gov/printable/reference.html (accessed in March 2010)

Walker, T.R.; Reid, K.; Arnould, J.P.Y.; Croxall, J.P. (1997) - Marine debris surveys at Bird Island, South Georgia 1990-1995. Marine Pollution Bulletin, 34(1):61-65. (DOI:10.1016/S0025-326X(96)00053-7)

Williams, A.T.; Tudor, D.T.; Randerson, P. (2003) – Beach litter sourcing in the Bristol Channel and Wales, UK. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution, 143(1-4):387-408. (DOI: 10.1023/A:1022808908500)

Wiseman Jr., W.J.; Sturges, W. (1999) - Physical oceanography of the Gulf of Mexico: processes that regulate its biology. In: Kumpf, H., Steidinger, K. & Sherman, K. (eds.), The Gulf of Mexico Large Marine Ecosystem, pp.77-92, Blackwell Science, Inc., Malden, MA, USA. (ISBN-10: 0-632-04335-0)

Wood, S.N. (2006) - Generalized Additive Models. 391p., Chapman and Hall, New York, NY, USA. (ISBN-13: 978-1-58488-474-3).

 

em construção