Preface

This book is a collection of reviewed and relevant research chapters concerning developments within the plastics in the environment field of study. The book includes scholarly contributions by various authors and is edited by experts pertinent to plastic pollution. Each contribution comes as a separate chapter complete in itself but directly related to the book's topics and objectives.

 The book consists of five chapters: (Chapter 1) From Macroplastic to Microplastic Litter: Occurrence, Composition, Source Identification and Interaction with Aquatic Organisms. Experiences from the Adriatic Sea, (Chapter 2) Technological Approaches for the Reduction of Microplastic Pollution in Seawater Desalination Plants and for Sea Salt Extraction, (Chapter 3) Elemental Analyzer/Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometry (EA/IRMS) as a Tool to Characterize Plastic Polymers in a Marine Environment , (Chapter 4) Study of the Technical Feasibility of the Use of Polypropylene Residue in Composites for Automotive Industry and (Chapter 5) Biological Degradation of Polymers in the Environment.

This book will be interesting to various readers, researchers, scholars, and specialists in the field, who will find this information useful for the advancement of their research work.

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**1**

**Chapter 1**

**Abstract**

Adriatic Sea

addressing marine litter.

distribution models

**1. Introduction**

From Macroplastic to Microplastic

Litter: Occurrence, Composition,

Organisms. Experiences from the

Marine litter is human-created waste that has been discharged into the coastal or marine environment. "Marine debris" is defined as anthropogenic, manufactured, or processed solid material discarded, disposed of, or abandoned in the environment, including all materials discarded into the sea, on the shore, or brought indirectly to the sea by rivers, sewage, storm water, waves, or winds. A large fraction of marine debris is made up of plastic items. Plastic marine debris has become one of the most prevalent pollution related problems affecting the marine environment globally. The widespread challenge of managing marine litter is a useful illustration of the global and transboundary nature of many marine environmental problems. At a global level, plastic litter constitutes 83–87% of all marine litter. Land-based sources are estimated to be responsible for approximately 80% of marine litter. The largest portion of plastic associated with marine pollution is often linked to the contribution from terrestrial sources associated with accidental or deliberate spills as well as inefficient waste management systems in heavily anthropized coastal regions. This chapter is intended to serve as a catalyst for further discussion to explore the potential for developing a Mediterranean regional framework for

*Alessio Gomiero, Pierluigi Strafella and Gianna Fabi*

**Keywords:** plastic debris, Adriatic Sea, sediments, floating litter, sediments,

We live in the "Plastic Age". From its creation in the early 1870, plastic material has largely contributed to the society development making everyday life easier. Plastic material offer good advantages as it can be customized with specific shapes and chemical and physical properties i.e., elasticity, hardness, lightness, transparency and durability. Due to this, the production has dramatically boosted annual plastic production from 0.5 million tons in the 40s to 550 million tons in 2018 [1].

Source Identification and

Interaction with Aquatic
