Microplastic (MPL) contamination in the marine environment is extensively studied yet little is known about the extent of MPL abundance in seagrass beds. The aim of this study was to evaluate MPL accumulation in coastal seagrass (Zostera marina) beds in the Baltic Sea, Estonia.

Surface water was sampled by pumping using 40 μm plankton net, and sediments by trowel. MPL was extracted with NaCl, identified by microscopy and ATR-FTIR on selected samples.

Surface water in the seagrass beds had 0.04–1.2 (median 0.14) MPL/L, similar to other areas of the Baltic Sea. Sediments had 0–1817 (median 208) MPL/kg (dwt), much higher than previously recorded from adjacent unvegetated and offshore sediments, thereby suggesting a strong ability of the sediments in seagrass beds to retain MPL. Of identified MPL, blue fibres were dominant in both the sampled media. Sediment characterization showed a correlation between MPL counts with poorly sorted sediments.

海洋环境中的微塑料（MPL）污染已得到广泛研究，但对海草床中MPL丰度的了解却很少。这项研究的目的是评估爱沙尼亚波罗的海沿岸海草（Zostera marina）床中的MPL积累。

使用40μm浮游生物网通过抽水采样地表水，并通过抹泥刀对沉积物进行采样。用NaCl提取MPL，通过显微镜和ATR-FTIR对选定的样品进行鉴定。

海草床中的地表水MPL / L为0.04–1.2（中位数为0.14），与波罗的海其他地区相似。沉积物的MPL / kg（dwt）为0–1817（中位数），远高于先前在邻近无植被和近海沉积物中记录的水平，因此表明海草床中的沉积物具有强大的MPL保持能力。在鉴定出的MPL中，蓝色纤维在两种采样介质中均占优势。沉积物表征显示MPL计数与沉积物分类不良之间的相关性。