Abstract
Mismanaged plastic wastes generated in East and Southeast Asian countries account for 55% of the world’s total amount of “macroplastics”. These macroplastics released into the ocean environment are being carried by ocean currents and wind (i.e. lee-way drift) on the surface of the sea. In the ocean, they are then gradually fragmentized into “microplastics” due to their being exposed to ultraviolet radiation and mechanical erosion on beaches. Pelagic microplastics are carried by ocean currents and the Stokes drift in conjunction with removal processes such as settling due to biofouling. The fate of microplastics in the circulation of ocean plastics, including both physical transport and removal processes, remains unknown.
