Fate and Impact of Microplastics in Marine Ecosystems: From the Coastline to the Open Sea brings together highlights from the conference proceedings for MICRO 2016: Fate and Impact of Microplastics in Marine Ecosystems: From the Coastline to the Open Sea. While the presence of microplastics in ecosystems has been reported in the scientific literature since the 1970's, many pressing questions regarding their impacts remain unresolved. This short format title draws from the shared scientific and technical material and summarizes the current research and future outlook. - Includes a range of topics, from macro- to microplastics - Presents data from source to sink, including occurrence and distribution of microplastics in freshwater bodies, coastal zones, and the open ocean - Presents the impacts of microplastics on marine life as well as microplastics as vectors of biological and chemical contaminants - Provides important analysis on solutions and next steps