MicroplasticsDetermination in theRivers with Different Urbanisation Variances: A Case Study in Kuching City, Sarawak, Malaysia

Georgina, Johnson and Hii, Wen San and Samuel, Lihan and Tay, Meng Guan (2020) MicroplasticsDetermination in theRivers with Different Urbanisation Variances: A Case Study in Kuching City, Sarawak, Malaysia. Borneo Journal of Resource Science and Technology, 10 (2). pp. 116-125. ISSN 2229-9769

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Abstract

The presence of microplasticsin aquatic systems is mainly due to the anthropogenic activities such as domestic waste dumping. Undeniably,rivers either in urban or suburban areas are always a waste dumpling sites from the surrounding residences. Thus, the purpose of this study wastodetermine the relationship betweenmicroplastic abundance anddifferent degree of urbanization across Kuching in Sarawak. Three sampling locations with different degrees of urbanisation hadbeen studied across Kuching. A total of 137 pieces of microplastics were collected along the study and analysed using stereoscopic microscope for the shape identification and FTIR spectrophotometer for functional groups present in the microplastics. Filament was the most abundant microplastics shape found, whereas the IR results showed that ethylenevinylacetate (9%), polyamides or nylon (15%), polypropylene (42%), poly(methylmethacrylate) (16%) and polystyrene (18%) were found in the study. The most abundant microplastics in the water samples was polypropylene (42%), whereas ethylenevinylacetate (9%) was the least. The degree of urbanisation does not directly relate to the microplasticpresent in the river system in Kuching City, but the anthropogenic activity is the main factor that affecting the microplastic abundance in the river.

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