Microplastic contamination has been identified in Antarctic sea ice by an Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS)-led research team, including researchers from the Australian Antarctic Division.
Published in the journal Marine Pollution Bulletin, the new study analysed an ice core collected in East Antarctica in 2009 and identified 96 microplastic particles from 14 different types of polymer.
IMAS student and lead author Anna Kelly said plastic pollution has previously been recorded in Antarctic surface waters and sediments as well as in Arctic sea ice, but this is thought to be the first time plastic has been found in Antarctic sea ice.
“The remoteness of the Southern Ocean has not been enough to protect it from plastic pollution, which is now pervasive across the world’s oceans,” Ms Kelly said.
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