A Study on Transboundary Governance of Marine Plastic Debris—the Case of an Adjacent Waters between China and Taiwan

Abstract

Abstract This study aimed to construct a transboundary marine governance mechanism in the Kinmen-Xiamen Waters through literature review, field survey, in-depth interview, and expert opinion survey. The study finding that monsoons, ocean currents and tides are the main factors affecting the drift of marine debris in the Xiamen Sea area to the beaches of Kinmen. The marine debris mainly included marine plastic debris (MPD), bamboo and wood in Kinmen, and was documented impacting a variety of species, including thehorseshoe crab to marine mammals the IndoPacific dolphin. In addition, the problem of marine micro-plastic pollution is becoming increasingly worrisome, and hazardous to rare creatures in the Xiamen Sea area. The pollution sources of MPD in Xiamen Bay included coastal tourism activities, micro-plastic discharged from sewage treatment plants, plastic waste produced by lost and discarded marine aquaculture and plastic drifting terrestrial waste transported by from the Jiulong River Basin.