Abstract
Maintenance of maritime vessels includes the removal of paint from hulls that are sources of metals, antifouling paint particles (APPs) and microplastics (MPs) that end up in the coastal environment. Simon’s Town is a small urban town in False Bay, Cape Town, South Africa, where maritime activities take place (there is a naval harbour, marina and shipyard). The aim of this study was to measure metals, APPs and MPs in Simon’s Town, to assess the impact of maritime activities and a storm water pipe in a sheltered marina. Sediment samples were collected from six sites during winter 2018. Sediment and extracted APPs were analysed for metal concentrations (Al, As, B, Ba, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Mo, Ni, Pb, Se, Sb, Sn, Sr, V and Zn) and MPs characterised based on type (shape and polymer), colour and size. Highest average metal concentrations in sediment for all sites were Fe (32228 ± SEM 4024), Al (12271 ± 1062) and Cu (1129 ± 407). Metals in paint particles were highest for Fe (80873 ± 19341), Cu (66762 ± 13082) and Zn (44910 ± 1400 µg/g). Metal and MP fragment concentrations were highest at the slipway of the shipyard, decreasing with increased distance from the slipway. MP filaments were highest close to the storm water outfall pipe. Our results suggest that shipyards are potential sources of metals and MP fragments (mainly APPs), with storm water pipes potential sources of MP filaments. Various indices applied to assess the potential impacts of metals and MPs suggest that these contaminants have the potential to adversely impact the intertidal ecosystem investigated.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the Cape Peninsula University of Technology for their support in granting space and facilities for sampling and laboratory analyses. Mr Siviwe Yuyu is acknowledged for his contribution in sample collection and laboratory work. We thank the False Bay Yacht Club for providing us access to their premises.
Funding
This work was funded by the National Research Foundation, South Africa (Funding project reference: Thuthuka TTK190406427888, Grant No.: 121970). We thank the Benguela Current Convention for providing funds to source equipment.
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Conrad Sparks did conceptualisation, funding acquisition, methodology, investigation, supervision, writing—review and editing. Adetunji Awe performed methodology and writing—review and editing.
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Sparks, C., Awe, A. Concentrations and risk assessment of metals and microplastics from antifouling paint particles in the coastal sediment of a marina in Simon's Town, South Africa. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 59996–60011 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-18890-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-022-18890-z