Microplastics – News and Features

Biodegradable plastics may not be the solution to plastic pollution many hoped for, with a University of Otago study showing they are still harmful to fish.

Scientists measured microplastic concentrations in the highly productive Barents Sea and suggest that ocean circulation, ice melt, tourism, inadequate waste management, shipping and fishing are all likely contributors.

Using micro-engineered soil models, researchers at Lund University in Sweden have investigated the effect of tiny polystyrene particles on bacteria and fungi.

A research team has developed the world's first technology to rapidly and highly sensitively detect microplastics in the field, which are well known to cause human and genetic toxicity through environmental pollution and the food chain.

A newly-developed carbon capture method called the moisture-swing technique enables carbon removal from virtually anywhere, in ambient conditions.

Researchers in Missouri have found high concentrations of microplastic in Cliff Cave, a cave system in Saint Louis County that has been closed off to visitors for the past 30 years. The extent of the microplastic contamination is detailed in two new research papers, published in Science of the Total Environment and Water Research.

Plastic waste that accumulates on land eventually ends up in the ocean as microplastics. However, it is now speculated that microplastics are also present in the atmosphere, contained in clouds.

Significant quantities of microplastic particles are being trapped in riverbed sediments or carried through the air along major river systems. Research found about 41 microplastic particles per square metre per day settled from the atmosphere.

It is impossible to imagine modern agriculture without plastics. 12 million tonnes are used every year. But what about the consequences for the environment? An international team of authors addresses this question in a recent study.

Non-targeted analysis (NTA) is an emerging field of analytical science that aims to identify all chemicals around us. According to a meta-analysis of NTA results published over the past six years, it is estimated that less than 2% of all chemicals have been identified.