Date of Award

Spring 5-7-2025

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science (BS)

Department

Marine Science

College

College of Science

First Advisor

Diane B. Fribance

Abstract/Description

In the last 20 years, microplastics have become a significant concern for ecosystem and public health. The buoyancy and method of introduction makes river plumes a likely repository for microplastic accumulation. A river plume is a bulge of fresher water that expands radially from the mouth of an estuary, with distinct lines called fronts at the leading edge of the plume. A front is a region of convergence between the fresher plume water and the saltier ocean water. The density differences between the two water masses may create an easily identifiable color and salinity gradient. These fronts often allow for the accumulation of particulates as the estuarine water carries them to the front, but they become trapped there by the strong density gradient.The goal of this study is to determine if there are significant differences in concentration or composition of microplastics inside and outside of the plume front. To accomplish this, glass jars were used to obtain near-surface water samples from inside and outside the plume front. The samples were filtered and dried before the concentration and composition of each sample was quantified via microscope. There were significantly higher microplastics concentrations in the river plume when compared to the ocean. There were also significantly higher microplastic concentrations in Winyah Bay when compared to the river plume. The elevated microplastic concentrations in the river plume may be due to the sharp density gradient created by the front that acts as a barrier to mixing. The elevated microplastic concentrations at the front may be of ecological and human health concern as they interact with biota and soak up toxins.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

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