AVALIAÇÃO DA CORRELAÇÃO ENTRE O LIXO MARINHO NO SEDIMENTO COSTEIRO E FAUNA BENTÔNICA NO PONTAL DE MARACAÍPE – PE (2020 – 2021)

Abstract

The aspects that the ocean provides to society are countless, examples of which include tourist, economic and fishing activities. However, these activities can generate negative consequences for the environment when not carried out consciously. Through some bioindicator organisms it is possible to understand the state of the environment. Therefore, the present study aimed to: (1) identify the pattern of dispersion of marine and benthic litter along Pontal de Maracaípe, relating the years 2020 and 2021 to the global pandemic, (2) identify the general pattern of drift coastal area and the occurrence of wave convergence zones for the coast of Pernambuco and observe their possible splendor with the distribution of pellets along the studied locations comparing the years 2020 and 2021; (3) qualitatively and quantitatively analyze the meiofauna and macrofauna in Pontal de Maracaípe and (4) identify the presence of nanoplastic and microplastic as an integral part of these communities. At the end of the study, it was possible to notice an increase of 40% in relation to the presence of benthic fauna, and in the two years the organisms that stood out were the phylum Nematoda, the Class Oligochaeta and the phylum Sarcomastigophora, where the first two are considered bioindicators of pollution. Furthermore, there was a 17% increase in relation to microplastic as well. When investigating the pattern of coastal drift, an increase was shown from 2020 to 2021, which would justify the increase in previous variables, knowing that the movement of people was not local due to a period of pandemic.