A new study measured that more than 269,000 tons of plastic pollution is most likely floating in the world's oceans.
Microplastic is found throughout the world's oceans, but past predictions regarding the exact quantity have lacked sufficient data to support them, PLOS reported.
To make a more accurate estimate, research teams from six countries looked at data from 24 expeditions collected between 2007 and 2013. The samples were taken across "all five sub-tropical gyres, coastal Australia, Bay of Bengal, and the Mediterranean Sea." The data included information about microplastics that was collected using nets, as well as visual surveys.
Based on the newly compiled data and modeling methods, the researchers estimated a minimum of 5.25 trillion plastic particles weighing nearly 269,000 tons are in the world's oceans. The smallest particles of plastic were found to be present in more remote regions such as the subpolar gyres.
The unexpected results suggest the tiny microplastics found in remote regions are degraded when the gyres act as "shredders" of larger plastic items that are then ejected into the ocean.
"Our findings show that the garbage patches in the middle of the five subtropical gyres are not the final resting places for the world's floating plastic trash. The endgame for micro-plastic is interactions with entire ocean ecosystems," said Marcus Eriksen, PhD, Director of Research for the 5 Gyres Institute.
The findings were published in a recent edition of the journal PLOS ONE.
