Decommissioning pipelines used by the oil and gas industry could result in substantial quantities of microplastics being released into the UK’s marine environment annually, a new study has suggested.
Decommissioning pipelines used by the oil and gas industry could result in substantial quantities of microplastics being released into the UK’s marine environment annually, a new study has suggested.
Conducted by scientists at the University of Plymouth, the research examined the degradation of plastics in subsea oil and gas pipelines and umbilicals (including hoses and cables) as a previously underexplored source of microplastic pollution.
They estimated that almost 220,000 tonnes of plastics have been deployed in subsea pipeline and umbilical coatings on the UK Continental Shelf – an area that includes parts of the North Sea, where most oil and gas activity is located, in addition to the North Atlantic, the Irish Sea and the English Channel.
Read more at: University of Plymouth
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