UNIVERSITY OF HAWAIʻI - An analysis of more than 2,300 seawater samples from more than 20 field studies around the globe indicates that human-made chemicals—from plastic additives and industrial lubricants to pharmaceuticals and pesticides—are widespread in the marine environment, particularly in coastal and estuarine waters. The study, co-authored by University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa oceanographers and led by biochemists at the University of California, Riverside, represents one of the most comprehensive chemical analyses of coastal oceans to date.
The team analyzed seawater samples collected over a decade from coastal regions from the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Reported in Nature Geoscience, the findings show that industrial chemicals, many of which are rarely monitored, are far more abundant and widespread than previously recognized.