Soil microplastic pollution shifts relative dominance in competition between native and invasive plants

Soil Microplastic Pollution Enhances Plant Invasions by Restructuring Native – Invasive Competitive Interactions

Microplastics in Soil-Plant Systems

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This review synthesized evidence on microplastic contamination in terrestrial soil-plant systems, examining effects on soil structure, nutrient cycling, microbial communities, and plant uptake of plastic particles. Because plants can absorb microplastics and translocate them into edible tissue, agricultural soil contamination represents a direct and underappreciated pathway of human dietary exposure to plastic particles.

Microplastic Pollution in Terrestrial Systems: Sources and Implications for Soil Functioning and Plant Performance

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Researchers reviewed how microplastics enter terrestrial ecosystems through atmospheric deposition, irrigation, and agricultural mulching and found they reduce soil moisture, disrupt microbial communities, impair nutrient cycling, and harm earthworms — collectively threatening soil health and plant performance in agricultural and natural systems.

Feedback, synergy and antagonism between microplastics and soil organisms

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Microplastics, tiny plastic fragments from industrial waste and vehicle exhaust, are building up in soil, and this review pulls together research on how they disrupt soil life, from bacteria to earthworms to crop plants like wheat and tomatoes. The effects are a mixed bag: some microbes actually thrive, while earthworms can suffer toxic effects and plants may absorb harmful chemicals through their roots. This matters because these plastics can accumulate over time and potentially move up the food chain into the foods we eat, though scientists say more research is needed to fully understand the risks.

Microplastics in Plant Species: Impacts and Ecological Perspectives

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This analysis examined how microplastics affect plant physiology in terrestrial ecosystems, including uptake through roots, translocation into edible tissues, disruption of photosynthesis, and alteration of soil microbial communities that plants depend on. Because many staple crops can absorb and accumulate microplastics from contaminated soil and irrigation water, agricultural microplastic pollution translates directly into human dietary exposure through fruits, vegetables, and grains.