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Assessment of surface microplastics abundance in the Mediterranean Sea collected aboard R/V Tara from 2014-06-03 to 2014-11-08 (NCEI Accession 0270530)

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This study assessed the load of surface microplastics (i.e. plastics less than 5mm, reported in unit of pieces/m^3) abundance at 124 sites in the Mediterranean Sea from 2014-06-03 to 2014-11-08. Microplastics data were collected aboard R/V Tara using manta net, towed at the top 10 cm of the sea surface with an average speed of 2.5-3 knots for 60 minutes. This dataset contains the results from all surface net tows, in a spreadsheet format.

Dataset Citation

Cite as: Pedrotti, Maria Luiza; Lombard, Fabien; Baudena, Alberto; Galgani, François; Elineau, Amanda; Petit, Stephanie; Henry, Maryvonne; Troublé, Romain; Reverdin, Gilles; Ser-Giacomi, Enrico; Kedzierski, Mikaël; Boss, Emmanuel; Gorsky, Gabriel (2022). Assessment of surface microplastics abundance in the Mediterranean Sea collected aboard R/V Tara from 2014-06-03 to 2014-11-08 (NCEI Accession 0270530). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0270530. Accessed [date].

Dataset Identifiers

ISO 19115-2 Metadata

gov.noaa.nodc:0270530

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Download Data	HTTPS (download) Navigate directly to the URL for data access and direct download. FTP (download) These data are available through the File Transfer Protocol (FTP). FTP is no longer supported by most internet browsers. You may copy and paste the FTP link to the data into an FTP client (e.g., FileZilla or WinSCP).
Distribution Formats	Excel
Ordering Instructions	Contact NCEI for other distribution options and instructions.
Distributor	NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information +1-301-713-3277 NCEI.Info@noaa.gov
Dataset Point of Contact	NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information ncei.info@noaa.gov

Time Period	2014-06-03 to 2014-11-08
Spatial Bounding Box Coordinates	West: -6.3806 East: 34.7345 South: 33.683 North: 43.8759
Spatial Coverage Map

General Documentation

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Descriptive Information
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Associated Resources

The NOAA NCEI Global Marine Microplastics Database (1972-present)
- NCEI Collection
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Pedrotti ML, Lombard F, Baudena A, Galgani F, Elineau A, Petit S, Henry M. Trouble R, Reverdin G, Ser-Giacomi E, Kedzierski M, Boss E, Gorsky G. An integrative assessment of the plastic debris load in the Mediterranean Sea. Science of the Total Environment. 2022 Sep 10;838:155958.
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.155958
  journal article

gov.noaa.nodc:NCEI-Marine-Microplastics

Publication Dates	publication: 2022-11-23
Data Presentation Form	Digital table - digital representation of facts or figures systematically displayed, especially in columns
Dataset Progress Status	Complete - production of the data has been completed Historical archive - data has been stored in an offline storage facility
Data Update Frequency	As needed
Supplemental Information	Submission Package ID: 8HHW34
Purpose	These data were collected in order to assess the surface microplastics concentrations in the Mediterranean Sea.
Use Limitations	accessLevel: Public Distribution liability: NOAA and NCEI make no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding these data, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NCEI cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data. If appropriate, NCEI can only certify that the data it distributes are an authentic copy of the records that were accepted for inclusion in the NCEI archives.

Dataset Citation	Cite as: Pedrotti, Maria Luiza; Lombard, Fabien; Baudena, Alberto; Galgani, François; Elineau, Amanda; Petit, Stephanie; Henry, Maryvonne; Troublé, Romain; Reverdin, Gilles; Ser-Giacomi, Enrico; Kedzierski, Mikaël; Boss, Emmanuel; Gorsky, Gabriel (2022). Assessment of surface microplastics abundance in the Mediterranean Sea collected aboard R/V Tara from 2014-06-03 to 2014-11-08 (NCEI Accession 0270530). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0270530. Accessed [date].
Cited Authors	Pedrotti, Maria Luiza Sorbonne University Lombard, Fabien Baudena, Alberto Galgani, François IFREMER Elineau, Amanda Petit, Stephanie Henry, Maryvonne Troublé, Romain Reverdin, Gilles Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Ser-Giacomi, Enrico Kedzierski, Mikaël Boss, Emmanuel UMaine Gorsky, Gabriel
Contributors	Sorbonne University (SU)
Resource Providers	Maria Luiza Pedrotti Sorbonne University (SU) Sorbonne University (SU)
Points of Contact	Ebenezer Nyadjro Mississippi State University (MSU)
Publishers	NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
Acknowledgments	Related Funding Agency: Institute of Ecology and Environment of the CNRS (INEE) grant, the French Ministry of Environment

Theme keywords	NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS microplastic concentration NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS in situ WMO_CategoryCode oceanography Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Science Keywords EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > WATER QUALITY > SEA SURFACE CONTAMINANTS > MICROPLASTIC CONCENTRATION
Data Center keywords	NODC COLLECTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS Sorbonne University NODC SUBMITTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS Sorbonne University
Platform keywords	NODC PLATFORM NAMES THESAURUS Tara Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Platform Keywords Ships ICES/SeaDataNet Ship Codes Tara (call sign: FVNM, ICES code: 35XI, 2009) Provider Platform Names R/V Tara
Instrument keywords	NODC INSTRUMENT TYPES THESAURUS Manta net Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Instrument Keywords NETS > NETS
Place keywords	NODC SEA AREA NAMES THESAURUS Adriatic Sea Aegean Sea Alboran Sea Balearic (or Iberian) Sea Ionian Sea Ligurian Sea Mediterranean Sea Mediterranean Sea - Eastern Basin Mediterranean Sea - Western Basin Tyrrhenian Sea Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN > MEDITERRANEAN SEA OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN > MEDITERRANEAN SEA > ADRIATIC SEA
Keywords	NCEI ACCESSION NUMBER 0270530

Use Constraints	Cite as: Pedrotti, Maria Luiza; Lombard, Fabien; Baudena, Alberto; Galgani, François; Elineau, Amanda; Petit, Stephanie; Henry, Maryvonne; Troublé, Romain; Reverdin, Gilles; Ser-Giacomi, Enrico; Kedzierski, Mikaël; Boss, Emmanuel; Gorsky, Gabriel (2022). Assessment of surface microplastics abundance in the Mediterranean Sea collected aboard R/V Tara from 2014-06-03 to 2014-11-08 (NCEI Accession 0270530). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0270530. Accessed [date].
Access Constraints	Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose.
Fees	In most cases, electronic downloads of the data are free. However, fees may apply for custom orders, data certifications, copies of analog materials, and data distribution on physical media.

Lineage information for: dataset
Processing Steps	2022-11-23T16:44:42Z - NCEI Accession 0270530 v1.1 was published.
Output Datasets	NCEI Accession 0270530 v1.1 NCEI Accession 0270530 v1.1 (download) published 2022-11-23T16:44:42Z

Lineage information for: dataset
Processing Steps	Parameter or Variable: MICROPLASTIC CONCENTRATION (measured); Units: pieces/m3; Observation Category: in situ; Sampling Instrument: Manta net; Sampling and Analyzing Method: Surface floating microplastics were collected onboard the R/V Tara between June and November 2014 in the framework of the TARA Mediterranean Expedition (https://oceans.taraexpeditions.org/en/tara-mediterraneeexpedition/). Microplastics were sampled across the basins, in coastal and offshore areas. The following main marine Mediterranean ecoregions were sampled during the Tara Mediterranean expedition: the Alboran Sea, the western Mediterranean Sea, the Ionian Sea, the Aegean Sea, and the Levantine Sea. Samples were collected from the surface using Manta nets (height 25 cm, width 60 cm, mesh size 333 μm) towed at an average speed of 2.5–3 knots for 60 min. This strategy was adopted to sample an appropriate volume of microplastics to reduce the influence of heterogeneous distributions. The volume of filtered seawater in each tow was measured using a mechanical flowmeter positioned at the center of the net mouth (Hydro-Bios). The average surface area sampled was 2640 m2 per tow and the average filtered volume was 422 m3. To minimize vertical mixing due to wind, net tows were conducted during periods of calm seas (Beaufort scale 1 to 3) for all sites selected for this analysis. Samples were fixed immediately with a 4% buffered formaldehyde. In the laboratory, the samples were gently transferred to a Petri dish. Plastic-like particles were manually separated from other components such as wood, zooplankton, and organic tissues. To minimize the contamination in our samples, a quality control approach was undertaken. All equipment was cleaned with milli-Q and a cotton jacket was worn during sampling and post-processing. During plastic sorting in the laboratory and analysis with the ZoosCan, an ambient air blank was made by placing a cellulose acetate filter (Whatman®) in a clean 47 mm glass Petri dish held open throughout the experiment. The filter was then inspected under stereomicroscopy and the synthetic microfibers, if present, were counted (between 2 and 15 items) and blanks were subtracted from the samples.; Data Quality Method: To certify the polymeric nature of the collected material, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analyses were performed. For that, 4723 particles (from 0.315 to 5 mm) from 54 selected sites were analyzed following a computational method developed that provides a representative view of the particle size distribution and chemical nature of the particles, and calculates the associated margin of error. Analyses confirmed that 97% of the MPs particles were synthetic materials, mainly polyolefins, with polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) accounting for 67.3 ± 2.4% and 20.8± 2.1% of the polymers collected, respectively..

Lineage information for: dataset

Processing Steps

Parameter or Variable: MICROPLASTIC CONCENTRATION (measured); Units: pieces/m3; Observation Category: in situ; Sampling Instrument: Manta net; Sampling and Analyzing Method: Surface floating microplastics were collected onboard the R/V Tara between June and November 2014 in the framework of the TARA Mediterranean Expedition (https://oceans.taraexpeditions.org/en/tara-mediterraneeexpedition/). Microplastics were sampled across the basins, in coastal and offshore areas. The following main marine Mediterranean ecoregions were sampled during the Tara Mediterranean expedition: the Alboran Sea, the western Mediterranean Sea, the Ionian Sea, the Aegean Sea, and the Levantine Sea. Samples were collected from the surface using Manta nets (height 25 cm, width 60 cm, mesh size 333 μm) towed at an average speed of 2.5–3 knots for 60 min. This strategy was adopted to sample an appropriate volume of microplastics to reduce the influence of heterogeneous distributions. The volume of filtered seawater in each tow was measured using a mechanical flowmeter positioned at the center of the net mouth (Hydro-Bios). The average surface area sampled was 2640 m2 per tow and the average filtered volume was 422 m3. To minimize vertical mixing due to wind, net tows were conducted during periods of calm seas (Beaufort scale 1 to 3) for all sites selected for this analysis. Samples were fixed immediately with a 4% buffered formaldehyde. In the laboratory, the samples were gently transferred to a Petri dish. Plastic-like particles were manually separated from other components such as wood, zooplankton, and organic tissues. To minimize the contamination in our samples, a quality control approach was undertaken. All equipment was cleaned with milli-Q and a cotton jacket was worn during sampling and post-processing. During plastic sorting in the laboratory and analysis with the ZoosCan, an ambient air blank was made by placing a cellulose acetate filter (Whatman®) in a clean 47 mm glass Petri dish held open throughout the experiment. The filter was then inspected under stereomicroscopy and the synthetic microfibers, if present, were counted (between 2 and 15 items) and blanks were subtracted from the samples.; Data Quality Method: To certify the polymeric nature of the collected material, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analyses were performed. For that, 4723 particles (from 0.315 to 5 mm) from 54 selected sites were analyzed following a computational method developed that provides a representative view of the particle size distribution and chemical nature of the particles, and calculates the associated margin of error. Analyses confirmed that 97% of the MPs particles were synthetic materials, mainly polyolefins, with polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP) accounting for 67.3 ± 2.4% and 20.8± 2.1% of the polymers collected, respectively..

Acquisition Information (collection)
Instrument	Manta net
Platform	Tara

Last Modified: 2023-08-07T01:31:50Z
For questions about the information on this page, please email: ncei.info@noaa.gov

Assessment of surface microplastics abundance in the Mediterranean Sea collected aboard R/V Tara from 2014-06-03 to 2014-11-08 (NCEI Accession 0270530)

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