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    Fisheries and Marine Resource Technology Discipline, Khulna University, Khulna-9208, Bangladesh

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Identification of mass plastics and effects of microplastics on upstream aquatic environment adjacent to Sundarbans

Funded By: Research and Innovation Centre, Khulna University, Bangladesh. 

Summery:

Plastics in the environment are spreading gradually at an alarming rate. Since they do not normally decompose in the environment, they stay for a long time and have a negative effect on the ecosystem. These residual plastics can also be split into small pieces to form microplastics (MP) which are less than 5mm in size. Plastics can be spread in two ways; primarily (synthetic fiber, toothpaste, care product, etc) and secondarily (breakdown of larger plastics). Several studies have suggested that MPs may move from the gut to the muscle and even into the bloodstream. MPs have been found in mollusk, fish, crabs, mussels, and oysters.

MP can even enter the food chain from mussels to crabs. The Sundarbans mangrove ecosystem is one of the most prolific ecosystems in the world. Sundarbans are the habitats of a diversified species including finfish, crabs, shrimps, bivalves, etc. Bivalves (e.g., clams, mussels, oysters, etc) have been widely used as an environmental indicator in biomonitoring because of their wide geographical distribution, the broad range of salinity tolerance, and easy accessibility. Several studies have reported that the Sundarbans ecosystem is at high risk of MP pollution because of uncontrollable anthropogenic activities. Waterways such as rivers, canals, and lakes are used as major routes for the transportation of MPs along the coast and sea. Pasur River is very a crucial river system for the Sundarbans ecosystem whereas the Rupsa River is an extension of the Pasur River near the Khulna districts. Hence, this project has been designed to conduct a comprehensive market survey on daily used plastics along with investing MP pollution in some unexamined aquatic species and their environment in upstream rivers adjacent to Sundarbans.

Details
Role Principal Investigator
Funding Agency National
Awarded Date October 2023
Completion Date on going