Mechanisms and Influencing Factors Making Agricultural Soil as a Sink for Microplastics

The escalating global concern surrounding microplastics (MPs) as persistent pollutants is evident, due to their increasing prevalence in various ecosystems especially in contexts of agricultural environment that remain inadequately explored, hampering research efforts. Significant MPs contamination of agricultural soils mostly occurs by a variety of causes including the application of compost and bio solids, irrigation with wastewater, mulching film, polymer-based fertilizers, pesticides, and atmospheric deposition that modify soil properties, affecting water retention, aeration, and nutrient availability, which subsequently impacts plant growth and crop yield. Complex interactions with soil qualities, agricultural practices, and soil biota all have an influence on the distribution, dispersion, and fate of MPs in the soil environment which have several significant challenges, particularly in investigating the bio magnification capability of MPs in the soil food chain, as well as their potential cytotoxic effects on humans and living creatures. This chapter conducts a comprehensive investigation of microplastics in agricultural soil, analyzing the non-linear dynamics of microplastics within the soil ecosystem by identifying their sources, environmental consequences, and analytical methods for their thorough assessment and quantification that deliver valuable insights for the benefit of the research community.