Facemasks: An insight into their abundance in wetlands, degradation, and potential ecotoxicity.

Autor: Paço A; Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM) and Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal. Electronic address: anapaco@ua.pt., Oliveira AM; Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal., Ferreira-Filipe DA; Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM) and Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal., Rodrigues ACM; Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM) and Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal., Rocha RJM; RiaSearch Lda., 3880-394 Murtosa, Portugal., Soares AMVM; Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM) and Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal., Duarte AC; Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM) and Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal., Patrício Silva AL; Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM) and Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal., Rocha-Santos T; Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (CESAM) and Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
Jazyk: angličtina
Zdroj: The Science of the total environment [Sci Total Environ] 2023 Dec 15; Vol. 904, pp. 166232. Date of Electronic Publication: 2023 Aug 11.
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.166232
Abstrakt: Disposable facemasks represent a new form of environmental contamination worldwide. This study aimed at addressing the abundance of facemasks in an overlooked natural environment with high ecological and economic value - the wetlands (Ria de Aveiro, Portugal, as study case), evaluating their potential biodegradation using naturally occurring fungi and assessing the potential ecotoxicity of released microfibres on local bivalves. All masks collected within 6500 m 2 area of Aveiro wetland were 100 % disposable ones (PP-based, confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy - FTIR) with an initial abundance of 0.0023 items/m 2 in Sept. 2021, which was reduced by ∼40 % in Apr. 2022 and ∼87 % in Sept. 2022, as a reflection of the government policies. Analysis of the carbonyl index (0.03 to 1.79) underlined their state of degradation, primarily due to sun exposure during low tides. In laboratory conditions, 1 mm 2 microplastics obtained from new disposable facemasks were prone to biodegradation by Penicillium brevicompactum and Zalerion maritimum inferred from microplastics mass loss (∼22 to -26 % and ∼40 to 50 %, respectively) and FTIR spectra (particularly in the hydroxyl and carbonyl groups). In addition, microfibres released from facemasks induced sublethal effects on the clam, Venerupis corrugata, mostly in their UV-aged form when compared to pristine ones, characterised by a decrease in cellular energy allocation (CEA) and an increase in aerobic energy metabolism (ETS). Concomitantly, clams exposed to 1250 items/L of UV-aged microplastics (similar to field-reported concentrations) expressed greater clearance capacity, indicating a need to compensate for the potential energy unbalance. This study provides the first baseline monitoring of facemasks in wetlands while bringing new evidence on their biodegradation and ecotoxicity, considering environmentally relevant conditions and keystone organisms in such environments. Such studies require scientific attention for rapid regulatory action against this emerging and persistent pollutant, also targeting remediation and mitigation strategies considering these items under pandemic scenarios.
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.
(Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)
Databáze: MEDLINE
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