Small Microplastics, and Microlitter Components in Superficial Water and Sediments of Krossfjorden, Svalbard Archipelago

Small microplastics (SMPs, <100 ?m), part of the microlitter, can reach high latitudes through long-range transport, but they can also be released locally by human settlements and commercial/tourist activities. In the same way, other microlitter components (MLCs), i.e., plastic additives, plasticizers, and natural and nonplastic synthetic fibres, can be carried from mid- to high latitudes or released into the environment. Microplastics > 100 µm were studied at high latitudes, while small microplastics, which can easily enter the food web due to the ingestion by invertebrates, have been overlooked. So far, the occurrence and distribution of plastic additives and plasticizers have never been investigated. Additives and plasticizers are generally included in plastic objects and can therefore be proxies for the presence of specific plastic polymers. In the summer of 2022, samples of surface seawater and marine sediments were collected in different sites of the Krossfjorden in the Svalbard Archipelago. Sampling activities were performed on board of MS-Teisten (Kings Bay vessel), using Niskin bottles and Van Veen Grabs. Field blanks were collected as well. At the "Dirigible Italia" base, sediment samples were divided into decontaminated glass jars, while seawater samples were filtered on glass fibre filters. All the samples were stored at 4°C before being shipped to Italy. Laboratory blanks were collected to check the contamination. At the CNR-ISP in Venice, samples were pretreated to extract simultaneously small microplastics and the microliter components, employing an oleo-extraction procedure which does not further degrade plastic particles and MCLs. Reagent and procedural blanks, together with those collected at Svalbard's, were pretreated and analyzed as samples. The analytical phase was performed with the ?icro-Fourier-transform Infrared spectroscopy. The results of this study provide us with information (i) on the identification and quantification, via microscopic counting, of SMPs and MLCs in surface seawater and sediments samples, (ii) on the sources, transport and fate of these pollutants. This study will be a starting point for increasing knowledge about plastic additives and plasticizers in the Arctic environment.