Microplastic pollution in soil and groundwater: a review

Plastic particles of less than 5 mm size, referred as microplastics, have recently become a major environmental issue. While microplastics are well known in marine and lake systems, there have been less investigations in soils and groundwater. Here we review the origin, shape, impact, and mitigation...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inEnvironmental chemistry letters Vol. 19; no. 6; pp. 4211 - 4224
Main Authors Chia, Rogers Wainkwa, Lee, Jin-Yong, Kim, Heejung, Jang, Jiwook
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Cham Springer International Publishing 01.12.2021
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects
Analytical Chemistry
Biodegradability
Biodegradation
Bioplastics
Contamination
Earth and Environmental Science
Ecotoxicology
Environment
Environmental Chemistry
Geochemistry
Groundwater
Lakes
Microplastic pollution
Mitigation
Nematodes
Plastic debris
Plastic pollution
Plastics
Pollution
Pyrolysis
Review
Soil contamination
Soil investigations
Soil pollution
Soil properties
Soil remediation
Soils
Topsoil
Impacts
Microplastics
Groundwater soil origin
Shape
Polymer type
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Summary:Plastic particles of less than 5 mm size, referred as microplastics, have recently become a major environmental issue. While microplastics are well known in marine and lake systems, there have been less investigations in soils and groundwater. Here we review the origin, shape, impact, and mitigation strategies of soil and groundwater microplastics. We found that littering is the main origin of microplastics in global topsoils, while greenhouses are the main source of microplastics in South Korea. Fibers and pellets are dominant microplastic shapes in soil and groundwater. Microplastic contamination of soil and groundwater is detrimental to human health, plants, nematodes, earthworms, and soil properties. Remediation methods include pyrolysis, replacing plastics by biodegradable plastics, plastic filtration, and subsequent chemical or biological degradation.
ISSN:1610-3653
1610-3661
DOI:10.1007/s10311-021-01297-6