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The Tiny Threat Beneath Our Feet: Microplastics in Soil
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Researchers reviewing soil contamination document how microplastics entering via sewage sludge, agricultural mulch, and wastewater alter soil physicochemical properties, disrupt microbial communities and enzyme activity, impair plant growth, and reduce fertilizer use efficiency — positioning soil as both a sink and an active ecosystem under threat.
The widespread production, continuous use, and unscientific disposal of plastic have led to significant impact on living ecosystem. Over time of degradation, larger plastic polymers degrade into smaller fragments known as microplastics (less than 5 mm). Soil serves as a natural reservoir for microplastics originating from various sources viz; sewage sludge, landfills, plastic mulch in agriculture, fertilizers, and municipal wastewater discharge environment. The accumulation of microplastics in soil impacts its physicochemical properties, disrupts the development and reproduction of fauna, affects plant growth, and alters microbial communities as well as enzyme activities also endanger to soil organisms and plant health. Some soil organisms may eventually die from ingesting microplastics. Microplastic leads to reduction in fertilizer use efficiency.
More Papers Like This
The Tiny Threat Beneath Our Feet: Microplastics in Soil
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers reviewed how microplastics accumulate in soil from sources including sewage sludge, plastic mulch, and municipal wastewater, finding that these particles degrade soil physicochemical properties, disrupt microbial communities and enzyme activity, impair plant growth, and reduce fertilizer use efficiency.
The impact of microplastics on soil ecosystems: A review
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This review examines how microplastics accumulate in soil from sources like sewage sludge, agricultural plastic mulch, and wastewater, and how they affect soil ecosystems. Evidence indicates that microplastics alter soil physical and chemical properties, disrupt microbial communities and enzyme activity, and can harm plant growth and soil organisms. The authors highlight that soil microplastic pollution has received far less research attention compared to aquatic environments, despite its potential consequences for agriculture and food safety.
How microplastics are destroying soil and human health
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This review examined how microplastics harm soil health — disrupting soil structure, water retention, microbial communities, and nutrient cycling — and how soil degradation translates into risks for human health through food and water contamination. It argues that soil microplastic pollution deserves equivalent attention to aquatic contamination.
What Do We Know About the Effects of Microplastics on Soil?
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This review examines the effects of microplastics on soil ecosystems, covering how mulching, wastewater irrigation, sludge application, and atmospheric deposition introduce microplastics to soil, where they alter physicochemical properties, affect microbial communities, and carry co-pollutants.
Recent advances on ecological effects of microplastics on soil environment
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This review summarizes recent advances in understanding the ecological effects of microplastics on soil environments. Researchers found that soils serve as major sinks for microplastics, which can alter soil properties, affect plant growth, disrupt soil microbial communities, and interact with other pollutants. The study highlights that terrestrial microplastic pollution may be even more pervasive than aquatic contamination and warrants greater research attention.
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