Microplastic pollution on hiking and running trails in Australian protected environments.

Autor: Forster NA; School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales 2351, Australia. Electronic address: nforste2@myune.edu.au., Wilson SC; School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales 2351, Australia. Electronic address: swilso24@une.edu.au., Tighe MK; School of Environmental and Rural Science, University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales 2351, Australia. Electronic address: mtighe2@une.edu.au.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: The Science of the total environment [Sci Total Environ] 2023 May 20; Vol. 874, pp. 162473. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Feb 25.
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162473
Abstrakt: Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous worldwide, present even in remote areas of the natural environment. Hiking and trail running are a source of MPs on recreational trails in protected environments, which are characterised by high biodiversity and natural, ecological or cultural significance. Our understanding of the risks of microplastic pollution is impeded however by a lack of information on MPs present in the soil environment in such areas. This study characterised the quantity and physicochemical characteristics of MPs in two conservation areas in south-eastern Australia: 1) the adjacent Duval Nature Reserve and Dumaresq Dam Reserve, and 2) the Washpool and Gibraltar Range National Parks. We measured atmospheric deposition over a six-month period in the Reserves, and baseline amounts of MPs on recreational trails in the Reserves and National Parks. Atmospheric deposition averaged 17.4 MPs m -2  day -1 and was dominated by fibres, comprising 84 % of MPs. Microplastics detected on trail surfaces ranged from 162.5 ± 41.6 MPs/linear metre to 168.7 ± 18.5 MPs/linear metre and exhibited a very wide range of physical and chemical characteristics. The majority of MPs on the trail surfaces comprised polyurethane, polyethylene terephthalate and polystyrene, and 47-71 % were fibres. Microplastics were attributed to clothing, footwear, litter, and diffuse sources. Minimising and preventing MP pollution, however, is complex given there are multiple direct and diffuse sources, and several factors influencing increased MP deposition and retention in the environment.
Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
(Crown Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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