Current State of Microplastics Research …
39
Fig. 3 Pie-chart distribution
of microplastic research
carried out on different
environmental compartments
by the SAARC nations
[140] and the coastal zone is considered as a significant microplastic hotspot as
about half of the world’s population resides in the vicinity of coasts [20]. Different
works have suggested the negative of microplastics on the coastal ecosystem and the
need to resolve the issues. India is surrounded by the Arabian Sea in the west, the
Bay of Bengal in the east, and the Indian Ocean in the south. It has a coastline of
nearly 7516.6 km (including islands) touching 13 States and Union Territories with
a population density of 560 million [17]. The review by Saha et al. [102] discussed
the problem of microplastic pollution along the Indian coast and expressed the need
for more investigations on microplastic contamination in different coastal regions of
India. On the western coast of India, microplastic investigations have been reported
from the shores of Gujarat, Mumbai, Goa, Kerala, and Karnataka. Reddy et al. [96]
wrote the pioneering work on plastic debris from Gujarat and Maharashtra coast.
They studied the intertidal sediments of the world’s largest shipping yard at Alangososiya, India, for the presence of small plastic debris. The obtained fragments
39
Fig. 3 Pie-chart distribution
of microplastic research
carried out on different
environmental compartments
by the SAARC nations
[140] and the coastal zone is considered as a significant microplastic hotspot as
about half of the world’s population resides in the vicinity of coasts [20]. Different
works have suggested the negative of microplastics on the coastal ecosystem and the
need to resolve the issues. India is surrounded by the Arabian Sea in the west, the
Bay of Bengal in the east, and the Indian Ocean in the south. It has a coastline of
nearly 7516.6 km (including islands) touching 13 States and Union Territories with
a population density of 560 million [17]. The review by Saha et al. [102] discussed
the problem of microplastic pollution along the Indian coast and expressed the need
for more investigations on microplastic contamination in different coastal regions of
India. On the western coast of India, microplastic investigations have been reported
from the shores of Gujarat, Mumbai, Goa, Kerala, and Karnataka. Reddy et al. [96]
wrote the pioneering work on plastic debris from Gujarat and Maharashtra coast.
They studied the intertidal sediments of the world’s largest shipping yard at Alangososiya, India, for the presence of small plastic debris. The obtained fragments