Collecting, analyzing, and reporting microplastics in environmental media: Lessons learned from comprehensive monitoring of San Francisco Bay

Microplastics are ubiquitous and persistent contaminants and a pervasive and preventable threat to the health of estuarine ecosystems. Understanding the magnitude of the microplastic problem and determining the highest priorities for mitigation require accurate measures of microplastic occurrence in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inFlorida scientist Vol. 86; no. 2; p. 105
Main Authors Miller, Ezra, Sedlak, Meg, Lin, Diana, Box, Carolynn, Holleman, Christopher, Rochman, Chelsea M, Sutton, Rebecca
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Orlando Florida Academy of Sciences, Inc 01.01.2023
Subjects
Best practice
Best practices
Brackishwater environment
Contaminants
Estuaries
Estuarine dynamics
Estuarine ecosystems
Fish
Microplastic pollution
Microplastics
Microscopy
Mitigation
Mollusks
Plastic debris
Plastic pollution
Prey
Quality assurance
Quality control
Sampling methods
Stormwater
Surface water
Wastewater
San Francisco Bay
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Summary:Microplastics are ubiquitous and persistent contaminants and a pervasive and preventable threat to the health of estuarine ecosystems. Understanding the magnitude of the microplastic problem and determining the highest priorities for mitigation require accurate measures of microplastic occurrence in the environment and identification of likely sources. However, the field of microplastic pollution is still in its infancy, and there are not yet widely accepted standards for sample collection, laboratory analyses, quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC), or reporting of microplastics in environmental samples. We performed the first comprehensive assessment of microplastics in an estuary by assessing San Francisco Bay surface water, sediment, prey fish, bivalves, stormwater, and wastewater effluent. Through this experience, we developed recommended best practices for collecting, analyzing, and reporting microplastics in environmental media. We recommend factors to consider in microplastic study design, particularly in regard to sampling methods. We also highlight the need for standard QA/QC practices such as collection of field and laboratory blanks, use of methods beyond microscopy to identify particle composition, and standardized reporting practices to facilitate cross study comparisons.
ISSN:0098-4590