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https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/55055
Title: | Microplastic pollution on hiking and running trails in Australian protected environments |
Contributor(s): | Forster, Nicola A (author); Wilson, Susan C (author) ; Tighe, Matthew K (author) |
Publication Date: | 2023-05-20 |
Early Online Version: | 2023-02-25 |
Open Access: | Yes |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162473 |
Handle Link: | https://hdl.handle.net/1959.11/55055 |
Abstract: | | 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 bio-diversity 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.
Publication Type: | Journal Article |
Source of Publication: | Science of The Total Environment, v.874, p. 1-11 |
Publisher: | Elsevier BV |
Place of Publication: | The Netherlands |
ISSN: | 1879-1026 0048-9697 |
Fields of Research (FoR) 2020: | 410501 Environmental biogeochemistry 410604 Soil chemistry and soil carbon sequestration (excl. carbon sequestration science) 410404 Environmental management |
Socio-Economic Objective (SEO) 2020: | 180601 Assessment and management of terrestrial ecosystems 180604 Rehabilitation or conservation of terrestrial environments 180605 Soils |
Peer Reviewed: | Yes |
HERDC Category Description: | C1 Refereed Article in a Scholarly Journal |
Appears in Collections: | Journal Article School of Environmental and Rural Science
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