Plastic pollution has increased significantly in the past decades and is now a major global environmental issue. Plastic objects enter the ocean and are broken down into smaller pieces, while wastewater and runoff also carry microplastics (plastics <5 mm) into the ocean. Plastic has been found in over 700 different species of marine wildlife but little research has examined fish sold for human consumption. We determined the microplastic abundance in nine commercially important, wild-caught fish species purchased from seafood markets across 4000 km of Australia (Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania, New South Wales). For microplastic quantification, fish gastro-intestinal tracts were chemically digested and the amount and type of microplastic identified under a microscope and Fourier transform infrared spectrometer. Across all states, an average of 35.5% of fish samples had at least one piece of microplastic in their gastro-intestinal tract. South Australia had the highest percentage of fish with plastic (49%) and Tasmania the lowest (20%). The average microplastic load was 0.94 piece per fish but ranged from 0 to 17 pieces, with polyolefin identified as the dominant polymer group. Overall, the ingestion of microplastic was widespread across species, locations, diets and habitat niches of fish species investigated, but the average plastic ingestion was less than other similar global studies. This study provides novel insights on the use of fish species from seafood markets to assess environmental contamination by microplastic, as well as an important perspective of the potential for microplastic contamination to enter the human food chain.

This study reports the shapes, dimensional classes, types and counts of microplastics (MPs) found in 23 individuals of N. norvegicus collected from two wild populations of the Adriatic Sea (Mediterranean basin). The focus was on three different anatomical compartments (gut, hepatopancreas and tail), which were analysed separately. MPs were found in all the investigated individuals with an average of about 17 MPs/individual. Fragments were predominant over fibers with a ratio of about 3:1. The majority of MPs were in the dimensional range 50–100 μm. The predominant polymers were polyester, polyamide 6, polyvinyl chloride and polyethylene, which together constitute about 61% of all the MPs found. Fragments were more concentrated in the hepatopancreas, with no significant difference between gut and tail, while fibers were more concentrated in the gut than in the tail with hepatopancreas somehow in between. The dimensional class of the MPs influences their anatomical distribution. There were no statistical differences among individuals from the two sampling sites. Sex of the individual did not influence the level of retained MPs, while length had a very marginal effect. The information reported here contributes to understanding of the possible risks linked to human consumption of different tissues from contaminated Norway lobsters.

Although liquid products derived from the pyrolysis of biomass are promising for the production of petroleum-like hydrocarbon fuels, the catalytic burden of hydrodeoxygenation must be reduced to achieve feasible upgrading processes. Herein, mild hydrotreating of an acid-rich biomass pyrolysis oil (bio-oil) with an unusually high total acid number (588 mg KOH/g bio-oil) was performed to stabilize the low-quality bio-oil. Ru-added TiO₂-supported transition metal catalysts stabilized the bio-oil by reducing its acidity more compared to what could be achieved by Ru-free catalysts; this process also leads to lower loss of organic compounds compared to when using a Ru/TiO₂ catalyst. Based on the performance of transition metal catalysts, including Ni, Co, and Cu, supported on TiO₂, tungstate-zirconia, or SiO₂, supported bimetallic catalysts were prepared by adding Ru to the TiO₂-supported metal catalysts. The bimetallic catalysts Ru/Ni/TiO₂ and Ru/Co/TiO₂ exhibited good decarboxylation activity for the removal of carboxylic acids and a higher yield of organic compounds compared to that provided by Ru, which can be deemed appropriate for feedstocks when hydrodeoxygenation needs to suppress the loss of organic reactants. Using these catalysts, the carboxylic acid concentration was reduced to 319–323 mg KOH/g bio-oil with organic yields of 62–63 wt% at reaction temperatures 150–170 °C lower than the temperature required for direct conversion of carboxylic acids to alcohols or deoxygenates. The improved catalytic hydrotreating activity of Ru-added transition metals can be attributed to the high acid site densities of these catalysts along with their improved hydrogenation activities.

The Lijiang River is of great ecological and environmental importance for Guilin City, which is located in the karst area of southeast China. Given its importance, a detailed evaluation of the heavy metals (HMs) in the river sediment is required. For the first time, 61 sediment samples were collected along the entire Lijiang River to determine pollution level and ecological risk posed by 10 HMs (Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb, Zn, As, Hg, and Cd). These were assessed using the geo-accumulation index, potential ecological risk index, and modified degree of contamination. The results showed that the mean concentrations of the majority of HMs exceeded their corresponding background values and followed the trend: midstream > downstream > upstream. Based on the spatial distributions and pollution indices of the 10 HMs, the Lijiang River was found to have a high accumulation of Cd, Hg, Zn, and Pb in the sediments. The midstream area was the most polluted with respect to Cd and Hg, and also posed a relatively higher potential ecological risk than the downstream and upstream areas. The sources of the assessed HMs were inferred based on a correlation analysis and principal component analysis, which identified both natural and anthropogenic sources. A higher pollution potential was associated with Cd, Hg, Pb, and Zn in the midstream and downstream areas due to higher organic and carbonate content, urbanization, agricultural activities, and leisure activities (e.g., boating and cruises). In contrast, natural erosion and weathering processes were responsible for the HM concentrations in the upstream area. The findings of this study will help the local authorities to protect the important water resource of the Lijiang River.

Litter is an ecological, economic, and social problem that impacts marine environments around the world. To create prevention and mitigation measures to solve this issue, it is necessary to understand the amounts and sources of this type of pollution. Cassino Beach is an extensive sandy beach located in South Brazil (∼220 km in length) that presents multiple uses, such as touristic, portuary and fishery activities. In order to evaluate the spatial and seasonal variation of litter amounts, types and sources at Cassino Beach, litter (>2.5 cm) was collected over 27 months at two urban and two non-urban sites. At each site, the litter present in three 200 m² areas was sampled and evaluated. A total of 19,457 items were collected, mostly composed by plastic (∼88%). Paper, metal, and cloth items were also present, but in low amounts. Fragments and cigarette butts were the major types of plastic litter, with abundances of 28.4% and 17.0%, respectively. Urban sites presented higher amounts of litter, with those related to beach use being more common, emphasizing the contribution of beachgoers to litter input at these sites. During the summer season, when beach use increases, the highest total litter concentration was found. Undefined and/or beach use-related sources were dominant in all sites and seasons. Mapping the predominant materials, types and potential sources of litter creates important baseline data that can contribute not only to beach monitoring, but also to the development of litter reduction strategies.

The world's oceans are under increasing pressure from anthropogenic activities, including significant and rapidly increasing inputs of plastic pollution. Seabirds have long been considered sentinels of ocean health, providing data on physical and chemical pollutants in their marine habitats. However, long-term data that can elucidate important patterns and changes in seabird exposure to marine pollutants are relatively limited but are urgently needed to identify and support effective policy measures to reduce plastic waste. Using up to 12 years of data, we examined the benefits and challenges of different approaches to monitoring plastic in seabirds, and the relationship between plastic and body size parameters. We found the mass and number of ingested plastics per bird varied by sample type, with lavage and road-kill birds containing less plastic (9.17–9.33 pieces/bird) than beach-washed or otherwise dead birds (27.62–32.22 pieces/bird). Beached birds therefore provide data for only a particular subset of the population, mostly individuals in poorer body condition, including those severely impacted by plastics. In addition, the mass and number of plastics in beached birds were more variable, therefore the sample sizes required to detect a change in plastic over time were significantly larger than for lavaged birds. The use of lavaged birds is rare in studies of plastic ingestion due to ethical and methodological implications, and we recommend future work on ingested plastics should focus on sampling this group to ensure data are more representative of a population's overall exposure to plastics.

Particulate matter with an aerodynamic equivalent diameter of 2.5 μm or less in ambient air (PM2.5) has become a global public and environmental problem, and the control of the PM2.5 concentration in air is an urgent problem. PM2.5 can easily penetrate the skin, activating the inflammatory response in skin, unbalancing the skin barrier function, and inducing skin aging. Hyperpigmentation is the main manifestation of skin aging and has a considerable impact on quality of life worldwide. To date, no research on the influence of PM2.5 on hyperpigmentation has been conducted. Here, we illustrate that PM2.5 can induce melanogenesis in vivo and in vitro by regulating TYR, TYRP1, TYRP2, and MITF expression via AhR/MAPK signaling activation. Furthermore, PM2.5 increased α-MSH paracrine levels, which in turn promote hyperpigmentation. Our results provide a deeper understanding of how PM2.5 disrupts skin homeostasis and function. Treatment with AhR antagonists may be a potential therapeutic strategy for hyperpigmentation induced by PM2.5.