The present and future of microplastic pollution in the marine environment • >100 works on microplastic marine pollution were reviewed and discussed. • Microplastics (fibres, fragments, pellets) are widespread in oceans and sediments. • Microplastics interact with POPs and contaminate the marine biota when ingested. • The marine food web might be affected by microplastic biomagnification. • Urgently needed integrated approaches are suggested to different stakeholders. Abstract Recently, research examining the occurrence of microplastics in the marine environment has substantially increased. Field and laboratory work regularly provide new evidence on the fate of microplastic debris. This debris has been observed within every marine habitat. In this study, at least 101 peer-reviewed papers investigating microplastic pollution were critically analysed (Supplementary material). Microplastics are commonly studied in relation to (1) plankton samples, (2) sandy and muddy sediments, (3) vertebrate and invertebrate ingestion, and (4) chemical pollutant interactions. All of the marine organism groups are at an eminent risk of interacting with microplastics according to the available literature. Dozens of works on other relevant issues (i.e., polymer decay at sea, new sampling and laboratory methods, emerging sources, externalities) were also analysed and discussed. This paper provides the first in-depth exploration of the effects of microplastics on the marine environment and biota. The number of scientific publications will increase in response to present and projected plastic uses and discard patterns. Therefore, new themes and important approaches for future work are proposed. 1. Introduction In 1972, E. J. Carpenter and K. L. Smith became the first researchers to sound the alarm on the presence of plastic pellets on the surface of the North Atlantic Ocean. In their publication in Science, they stated: “The increasing production of plastic, combined with present waste-disposal practices, will probably lead to greater concentrations on the sea surface… At present, the only known biological effect of these particles is that they act as a surface for the growth of hydroids, diatoms, and probably bacteria”. Not surprisingly, only months later, the ingestion of those same polyethylene pellets by fish was reported ( Carpenter et al., 1972). The prediction by Carpenter and Smith (1972) is the focus of the scientific community that is studying the smallest plastic debris pollution sizes ( Moore, 2008, Barnes et al., 2009, Thompson et al., 2009, Ryan et al., 2009 and Andrady, 2011). Several million tonnes of plastics have been produced since the middle of the last century (more than two hundred million tonnes annually) ( Barnes et al., 2009, Thompson et al., 2009 and Andrady, 2011). Speculation exists over how much of this plastic will end up in the ocean, where it suffers degradation and fragmentation ( Barnes et al., 2009 and Andrady, 2011). In the environment, microplastic debris (
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