Cilician Basin coast line (13 beaches)

Litter abundance and type

Amount and composition of litter washed ashore and/or deposited on coastlines and accumulated on the sea floor was determined in the framework of the MERMAID Project Pilot Study (http://www.mermaid-era.eu/) in 2014. Snapshot sampling was performed in April 2014 at 13 beaches located in the Cilician Basin (Eastern Mediterranean), while regular monitoring (weekly sampling) was performed at the model area - the IMS-METU beach – throughout the whole of 2014. The litter was collected by hand and photographic records were taken. Twelve distinct function categories were identified based on the last activity or type of usage. The material type of each litter item was reported according to MSFD categories (item/m2 and weight/m2). A three-step methodology for the detection of (1) the level of litter pollution, (2) the major activities contributing to the pollution and (3) the land-based origin of litter items was proposed and practicality tested on 13 beaches.

Institute of Marine Sciences, Middle East Technical University
P.O.Box 28
Erdemli
Mersin
33731
Turkey