Assessment of riverbank macrolitter contamination in two mediterranean river catchments: Laou and Martil, Morocco

Abstract

The Mediterranean Sea has been characterized in recent years by marine litter pollution. Our study aims to quantify waste flows in two watersheds in the northern Mediterranean region of Morocco. For Laou wadi and Martil wadi, floating and bank-accumulated waste was monitored during the autumn 2022 and spring 2023 seasons respectively. The results revealed that for Laou wadi, 384 objects/100 m were collected on the banks with a density of 0.20 objects/m2, and "plastic/polystyrene" constituted the main component of the total debris collected representing 57.19% in number of pieces, followed by "glass/ceramic" with 28.44%. For Martil wadi, 4715 objects/100 m were collected, with a density of 6.74 objects/m2, and "plastic/polystyrene" also constituted the main component of the total debris collected with 94.38%. The debris recorded are mainly associated with waste discharge along the river banks. It is therefore recommended to improve solid waste management and activate environmental control in the two Mediterranean basins studied in order to protect the Mediterranean Sea.