How microplastics in the air are polluting the most remote places on Earth

According to a new research, plastic is being transported to some of the most remote places on Earth by the wind. A new study shows how wind moves particles much faster than water.

The plastic can travel from their point of origin to the most remote corners of the planet in a matter of days.

Dr. Andrew Mayes developed a new way of detecting microplastics in water and went on to find them in bottled water around the world.

Microplastics are small plastic particles, which come from a variety of sources including cosmetics, clothing, industrial processes, packaging materials and degradation of larger plastic items.

Microplastics are found in the environment at high levels, particularly in aquatic and marine environments, but also in the soil and in the air.

We know that these tiny plastic particles have reached the ocean via ocean currents and rivers.

We wanted to better understand how microplastics find their way into the atmosphere and how they end up in our waters.

The research was led by Dr. Deonie Allen and Dr. Steve Allen from the University of Strathclyde.

Microplastics get into the atmosphere through human activities. Particles produced by tires and brakes in road traffic, or exhaust gases from industrial processes, rise into the atmosphere, where they are transported by winds.

The atmosphere mainly transports small microplastic particles, which makes it a much faster transport route that can lead to substantial deposits in a broad range of ecosystems.

The team discovered that up to 25 million metric tons of micro and nanoplastics are being transported thousands of kilometers a year by ocean air, snow, sea spray and fog.

This could reach 80 million metric tons per year by the year 2040, according to their estimates.

The case for the significance of the atmosphere as an alternative route of entry was made by Prof Peter Liss, from the UEA's School of Environmental Sciences.

This idea can be tested in future research. The potential implications of the atmospheric route for policy to decrease plastic pollution of the oceans are serious since rivers and atmosphere need to be tackled in very different regulatory ways.

The Alfred Wegener Institute's Dr. Melanie Bergmann said that air is more dynamic than water. Micro and nanoplastic can penetrate those regions of our planet that are most remote and untouched.

The particles could affect the environment. When these particles are deposited on snow and ice, they affect the ice-albedo feedback, reducing their ability to reflect sunlight and promote melting.

Dark patches of the ocean absorb more solar energy. In the atmosphere, microplastic particles can be used as condensation nuclei for water vapor, producing effects on cloud formation and the climate in the long term.

A lot of these particles are transported by the marine environment. Microplastic finds its way into the ocean through eroded beach sand.

Air bubbles are formed in the water with microplastic from the combination of sea spray, wind and waves. The particles get into the atmosphere when the bubbles burst. Transport to remote and even polar regions could be due to the combination of atmospheric and marine transport.

Understanding the interactions between the atmosphere and ocean is important to determining particle sizes and quantities.

Understanding the microplastic cycles between the ocean and atmosphere will require joint efforts. A global strategy for creating a seamless, intercomparable database on the flow of micro and nanoplastic between the ocean and atmosphere was outlined in the study.

There are so many aspects of the emissions, transport and effects of microplastic in the atmosphere that we still don't fully understand.

The journal Nature Reviews Earth and Environment published a paper on microplastics in the marine atmosphere.

More information: Deonie Allen et al, Microplastics and nanoplastics in the marine-atmosphere environment, Nature Reviews Earth & Environment (2022). DOI: 10.1038/s43017-022-00292-x Citation: How microplastics in the air are polluting the most remote places on Earth (2022, May 10) retrieved 10 May 2022 from https://phys.org/news/2022-05-microplastics-air-polluting-remote-earth.html This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.