Page - 101 - in Freshwater Microplastics - Emerging Environmental Contaminants?

Microplastics in InlandAfricanWaters: Presence, Sources, andFate FarhanR.Khan,Bahati SosthenesMayoma,Fares JohnBiginagwa, andKristianSyberg Abstract As the birthplace of our species, the African continent holds a unique place in humanhistory.Upon entering a newepoch, theAnthropocene definedby human-driven influences on earth systems, and with the recognition that plastic pollution is oneof thehallmarksof this newage, remarkably little is knownabout thepresence, sources, andfateofplastics (andmicroplastics (MPs))withinAfrican waters.Research inmarine regions,mostnotablyaround thecoastofSouthAfrica, describes the occurrence of MPs in seabirds and fish species. More recently environmental sampling studies in the same area have quantified plastics in both thewater column and sediments.However, despiteAfrica containing someof the largest and deepest of theworld’s freshwater lakes, includingLakesVictoria and Tanganyika as part of the African Great Lakes system, and notable freshwater rivers, such as theRiverCongo and theNile, the extent ofMPswithin the inland waters remains largely unreported. In the only study to date to describe MP pollutionin theAfricanGreatLakes,avarietyofpolymers, includingpolyethylene, polypropylene, and silicone rubber,were recovered from thegastrointestinal tracts ofNileperch (Latesniloticus) andNile tilapia (Oreochromisniloticus)fished from LakeVictoria. The likely sources of these plastics were considered to be human activities linked tofishingand tourism,andurbanwaste. In this chapterwediscuss the need for research focus onMPs inAfrica andhowwhat has beendescribed in F.R.Khan (*) andK.Syberg DepartmentofScienceandEnvironment,RoskildeUniversity,Universitetsvej1,P.O.Box260, DK-4000Roskilde,Denmark e-mail: frkhan@ruc.dk B.S.Mayoma DepartmentofLivestockandFisheriesDevelopment,MtwaraDistrictCouncil,P.O.Box528, Mtwara,Tanzania F.J.Biginagwa Department ofBiological Sciences, Faculty ofScience, SokoineUniversity ofAgriculture, P.O.Box3038,Morogoro,Tanzania M.Wagner, S.Lambert (eds.),FreshwaterMicroplastics, HdbEnvChem58,DOI10.1007/978-3-319-61615-5_6, ©TheAuthor(s) 2018 101