Sources, Fate and Effects of Microplastics in the Marine Environment: A Global Assessment

This report provides a global scientific assessment of microplastics in the marine environment, focusing on small plastic particles that either enter the ocean directly or are produced through the fragmentation of larger plastic items under environmental processes such as ultraviolet radiation. It introduces the issue of microplastics, outlines the rationale for undertaking the assessment, and reviews the growing international concern regarding plastic debris in marine ecosystems. The report examines the sources, distribution, environmental behaviour and potential effects of microplastics on marine organisms and ecosystems using available scientific studies, monitoring approaches and analytical methods. It also contributes to a structured assessment approach based on the Driver–Pressure–State–Impact–Response framework, providing an improved evidence base intended to support policy and management decisions aimed at reducing microplastic inputs to the oceans.