We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Microplastics in agricultural soils: sources, impacts, and mitigation strategies
Summary
This review summarizes how microplastics enter agricultural soils through wastewater irrigation, plastic mulch breakdown, and atmospheric deposition, where they alter soil structure, microbial communities, and water retention. The particles can also carry heavy metals and organic pollutants into the food chain, threatening both crop productivity and human health, making it important to reduce plastic use in farming and improve waste management.
Plastic particles smaller than 5 mm are known as microplastics, and they are becoming a major ecological and environmental hazard in agricultural soils. These particles come from a variety of sources, such as atmospheric deposition, wastewater irrigation, the breakdown of plastic mulches, and the use of biosolids. Once in the soil, microplastics change the microbial communities, water retention, and soil structure through interactions with physical, chemical, and biological processes. They may worsen soil contamination and possibly introduce harmful substances into the food chain by serving as vectors for organic pollutants and heavy metals. Sustainable agriculture is threatened by the presence of microplastics in agricultural soils, which also endanger crop productivity, ecosystem services, and soil health. Reducing plastic use, switching to biodegradable substitutes, improving waste management procedures, and creating cutting-edge technologies for the removal of microplastics are all examples of mitigation techniques. In order to protect soil health and agricultural sustainability, this review examines the causes, effects, and mitigation techniques of microplastics in agricultural soils, highlighting the necessity of coordinated research and policy interventions.
Sign in to start a discussion.
More Papers Like This
Microplastics in Agricultural Soils: An Emerging Threat to Soil Health, Microbial Ecology, Crop Productivity, and Food Safety
This review examines how microplastics accumulate in agricultural soils from sources like plastic mulch, sewage sludge, and atmospheric deposition. Researchers found that these particles can disrupt soil microbial communities, harm plant health, and potentially enter the human food chain. The study highlights the urgent need for mitigation strategies to address this growing but often overlooked form of pollution in farmland.
Microplastic contamination in the agricultural soil—mitigation strategies, heavy metals contamination, and impact on human health: a review
This review examines how microplastics contaminate agricultural soil through plastic mulch, irrigation water, and fertilizers, then alter soil chemistry, harm beneficial microorganisms, and reduce crop productivity. The authors highlight that microplastics can accumulate in crops and enter the human food chain, posing risks to food safety and human health, particularly through daily food and water consumption.
Microplastics as pollutants in agricultural soils
This review examines how microplastics end up in agricultural soils through sewage sludge application, wastewater irrigation, plastic mulch films, and atmospheric deposition. Researchers found that microplastics interact with soil organisms and can alter soil structure and microbial communities, but standardized detection methods are still lacking. The study highlights the need for research on how microplastics move through soil, their effects on crop health, and global policies to address this growing agricultural concern.
Microplastics in Agricultural Soils
This review covers the presence of microplastics in agricultural soils, examining how plastic mulches, irrigation water, sewage sludge, and atmospheric deposition contribute to farmland contamination. It discusses effects on soil organisms and the risk of microplastics entering the food chain through crops.
Microplastics in the agricultural soils: Pollution behavior and subsequent effects
This review summarizes existing research on how microplastics accumulate in farmland through fertilizers, irrigation, plastic mulch, and atmospheric fallout. Microplastics change soil structure, harm beneficial microbes, and can be taken up by crops, moving through the food chain to humans. The authors emphasize that more research is needed to understand the long-term health risks of eating food grown in microplastic-contaminated soil.