INDUSTRIAL PLASTIC ON THE SOUTHERN BEACHES OF THE ARABIAN GULF AND THE WESTERN BEACHES OF THE GULF OF OMAN

The increasing production and use of plastic in the Arabian Gulf combi ned with shipping and waste disposal practices, have increased the con centration of plastic particles on the sea's surface and beaches. The objective of this investigation was to provide an assessment of the ab undance, distribution, potential sources and significance of industria l plastic on the western beaches of the United Arab Emirates on the Ar abian Gulf and on the eastern beaches on the Gulf of Oman. The abundan ce of stranded plastic pellets was highly uneven. By early 1992 alarmi ng levels of fresh plastic pellets were noticed on the Arabian Gulf be aches of the UAE. Large numbers of 25 kg sacks of white plastic spheru les manufactured by (SABIC) in Jubail, Saudi Arabia were washed ashore . When compared to the west coast on the Arabian Gulf, the east coast on the Gulf of Oman exhibited much lower levels of plastic pellets. Wh en compared to other parts of the world, the beaches of the UAE on the Arabian Gulf are considered to be heavily polluted with industrial pl astic.