Sources and Impact of Microplastic Pollution in Indian Aquatic Ecosystem: A Review
Ephsy K Davis, Sudhakaran Raja
Abstract
Microplastics are major pollutant distributed widely throughout the Indian marine and freshwater are posing a significant risk to living organisms. World economic forum’s estimation, the world’s oceans will be filled with more plastics than fishes by weight by 2050. The extreme production and use of plastics being lead to plastic waste disposal, and the plastic degrade to microplastic. The growing amount of microplastics will continue to increase microplastic pollution in aquatic environments. Today, it is a major environmental problem because microplastics are less than 5 mm in size and associated with other pollutants that can be accumulated on the body to make health problems and lead to death. Microplastics are directly ingested by organisms from polluted water or indirectly through the contaminated food web. The effects of microplastics are wide-ranging, impacting marine life, fisheries, economics, tourism, plants, marine aesthetics, and human health. This paper review focuses on the microplastic sources, pollution, and its impact in the Indian aquatic environment.