Former De La Salle student Adam Dallas-Chapman surveyed ten local beaches and their coastal waters and found tiny fragments of plastic in every sample he took.
The highest concentration of microplastic pollution was found in St Aubin’s Bay, near where the sewage treatment enters the sea, his study found. He is hoping that his work will form the basis of further research into whether sewage treatment is linked to plastic pollution.
Mr Dallas-Chapman undertook the work for his dissertation to complete his Master’s degree in Environmental Protection and Management at Edinburgh University.
In addition to looking at the amounts of microplastic at each site, he also did a littler survey. In terms of litter, Jersey’s beaches were generally clean, with the exception of Havre des Pas.
Microplastic refers to any plastic under 5 mm in size and can be categorised either as primary – for example, the microbeads sometimes found in cosmetics – or secondary, meaning it has broken down from larger plastic objects.
It accounts for 92 per cent of the plastic pollution in the ocean and is of particular concern to environmentalists as it can get into the food chain.
According to scientists, it is not yet known how it might affect human health, but there are fears that the tiniest fragments, some of which are less than the width of a human hair, could get into the bloodstream.
While the Island’s average level of microplastic was higher than Guernsey’s according to the survey, the Sarnian data was over ten years old.
The high concentration found around St Aubin’s Bay has led Mr Dallas-Chapman to suggest it may be linked to the sewage output off Bellozanne.
‘The fact that this site recorded the highest number of microplastics across the entire coastal survey suggests that the Island’s sewage treatment works plays an important part in microplastic contamination,’ he wrote in his dissertation.
Mr Dallas-Chapman, who is now working for an environmental consultancy company in the south of England looking at water-based pollution incidents, said he intended his Master’s work to provide Jersey with a baseline study of current levels of microplastics.
He is also working with an academic adviser to potentially publish his study in a scientific journal.
He hopes that his research can be built upon to draw clearer conclusions on how sewage may be affecting microplastic distribution.
‘This would involve a similar study that would focus entirely on St Aubin’s Bay and would involve samples being analysed at various spots either side of the sewage outfall,’ he said.
Of the microplastics found in his survey, almost 70 per cent were fibrous in nature.
While Havre des Pas has the most litter, it was found to have less microplastic in the sand and coastal water.
‘This may suggest that microplastics are not linked to urban development (and the breakdown of Jersey-based plastic litter) but are instead originating elsewhere and then being transported to Jersey through tidal movements,’ Mr Dallas-Chapman said.
While disappointing to find this level of microplastic pollution in Jersey, he said it was a worldwide problem so not entirely surprising.
‘I believe we can [tackle microplastic pollution] through education and changing behaviour,’ he said. ‘Reducing plastic intake can be difficult but already people and organisations are attempting to do just that. Studies such as my research are also the first step in managing microplastic pollution as they provide a baseline for that further research.’
