Records of marine litter contamination in tropical beaches (Sergipe, Brazil) with different uses

This study aimed to develop a first diagnostic of marine litter presence over four sandy beaches located on the southern coast of Sergipe, a Brazilian state, by means of four samplings, from December 2017 to September 2018. There was no distinction between village, semi-rural, and rural areas regarding litter presence. Plastic was the most abundant litter (> 70%), mainly represented by the items such as food packaging, cups, straws, cigarette butts, lids/seals, as well as fragments and monofilaments. The abundance of items collected ranged from 0.1 and 9.2 items.m−1, and the beaches were characterized from very clean to dirty. The main sources were from tourism/recreation (42.7 ± 4.8%), followed by Unidentified (34.1 ± 6.7%), and Fishing/Marine activities (16.1 ± 6.3%). In addition, we highlight the importance of the correct litter management, environmental education activities, and marine litter monitoring program in order to reduce marine litter contamination. [Display omitted] •Most of the beaches had a higher amount of litter during the dry months•The litter was predominantly composed of plastic•Plastic was the only category found in all sampled sites•Areas near to rivers and urban concentration had a higher amount of litter•Sites near to rivers had a greater diversity of litter•Tourism/recreation was the main source of marine litter