The Situation of Marine Litter Collected During Demersal Surveys in 2012 in the Romanian Black Sea Area

Abstract

Currently, there are no national or regional programs for the strict monitoring of the existing litter on the seabed. However, adjacently, by carrying-out activities at sea (demersal trawlings,) the collection of wastes from the seabed was favored, which allowed a quantitative and assortment assessment thereof. In general, the abundance and distribution of the existing marine litter on the seabed shows a considerable spatial variability. Their geographical distribution on the seabed is strongly influenced by hydrodynamics, geomorphology and human factors. Romania, through the national pelagic and demersal fish species status evaluation program, was favored by trawling operations performed on the seabed to obtain data which allowed the quantitative and qualitative assessment of such wastes in the areas of activity.