Plastic fragments in two-thirds of Scots waters as pollution threat laid bare

Tiny fragments of plastic have been found in two-thirds of Scottish waters.

It’s the first time the scale of the pollution threat has been mapped by government scientists.

Tourist hotspot Loch Long – in the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park – was identified by researchers as having some of the highest levels of harmful microplastics.

Researchers say the non-recyclable particles from plastic shopping bags and bottles can be deadly to aquatic life and dangerous to humans.

Experts believe microscopic fragments are absorbed into the atmosphere, form clouds and are dropped as rain.

The tiny toxicants then get into the human food chain via soil and food crops.

Eco-activists said the findings provided “growing evidence” of the risks posed by pollution.

Scientists from Scottish Government agencies Marine Scotland and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) used three boats to collect 398 sea samples over six years between 2014 and 2020 for the groundbreaking study.

The research – published in the journal Marine Pollutions Bulletin – measured how much of the dangerous material was found in a square kilometre of seawater.

It found the highest levels of microplastics were in the Solway and the Firths of Clyde and Forth.

The Firth of Clyde samples included Loch Long, which cuts through 20 miles of Scottish coast from the North Sea on the west of the country.

Researchers said chemical testing of the debris linked it to the types of plastic used in throwaway bags, bottles and food containers.

The report said: “The Clyde Scottish Marine Region (SMR) is the most contaminated, particularly at the head of Loch Long near Arrochar, which has a known problem with beach debris and the higher microplastics in the water may be related to this.

“Elevated concentrations of microplastics are also found in the Solway, Argyll, West Highland and Forth and Tay SMRs.

“The least contaminated SMRs are the Outer Hebrides, Orkney Islands, Shetland Isles, North Coast, Moray Firth and the North East.

"Fragmented plastics account for almost 70 per cent of the microplastics recovered from the sea surface from 2014 to 2020.

“This may suggest the microplastics in Scotland’s seas are predominantly from the breakdown of larger items and the polymer composition of these fragments suggests that much of it may be due to the breakdown of consumer products such as bags, bottles and food containers.”

Dr Madeleine Berg, of environmental charity Fidra, said: “This study adds to the growing evidence that microplastic pollution poses a risk to Scottish seas and vulnerable species.

"We must stop this pollution at source. Microplastic gets into the environment from lots of different sources including from sports pitches and from spills of plastic pellets, known as nurdles, used to make products, as well as from bigger plastic items breaking down.”

Campaigner Jo Ruxton, who made a film now streaming on Netflix called A Plastic Ocean, said: “When we were researching the film, we spoke with scientists who told us that plastic you find in Antarctica or Loch Long in Scotland might have been manufactured in
China, for example.

"When it comes to microplastics, they are so small they get transported around the globe in our oceans and seas readily.

“That means we need a global approach to tackling it.”

But scientists welcomed the findings that showed almost 35 per cent of Scottish waters were microplastic free.

They also said concentration levels were low compared to other countries.

Microplastics range in size from tiny invisible specs to just 5mm – a fifth of an inch – and come from two sources.

The harmful materials are either the result of bigger chunks of plastic being broken down by things like seawater over time or manufactured to be used in beauty products, which was banned in 2018.

Microplastics are becoming a major environmental hazard across the globe, with the particles believed to pose a cancer risk and increased infertility among humans.

Sarah Moyes, of Friends Of The Earth Scotland, said: “Plastic is everywhere you look, from the deepest ocean to highest mountain, and these worrying figures show that microplastics are now present in the majority of Scottish waters too.

“Most plastic is derived from fossil fuels – therefore, the more plastic we make, the more climate-damaging emissions we release.

“In order to tackle the plastic crisis, we must significantly reduce plastic use and production in Scotland.

“People in Scotland are hugely supportive of action to reduce plastic in our lives.

"These figures and that appetite for change means the Scottish Government must move quickly to implement the ban on problematic single-use plastic items.”

Last year scientists at the UK’s National Oceanography Centre found there was 12-21million tons of tiny plastic fragments floating in the Atlantic Ocean.

In 2018, the Sunday Mail campaigned to make Scotland the first country in Europe to be free of plastic straws, which can take 500 years to decompose and are damaging to marine life.

It saw fast-food giant McDonald’s end their use in its Scottish outlets.

Nik Turner, litter prevention manager at Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, said: “The marine environment within the national park is extremely rich in biodiversity and we have been working for a number of years now to tackle the issues around marine litter and pollution that affect our coastal environment and communities.

“With an estimated 80 per cent of marine litter starting on land, the work we do to manage litter everywhere in the national park reduces the amount that might wash or be blown into lochs and rivers, therefore preventing it from  entering the marine environment in the first place.”