We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Long-Term Microplastic Accumulation Is Associated with Element-Specific Heavy Metal Mobilization in Agricultural Soils: Field Evidence from the Anning Valley, China
AI summary Read the abstract
Farmland soil in China's Anning Valley was studied across 1 to 8 years of greenhouse cultivation. Longer farming history was linked to more microplastics, especially near the surface, along with increased heavy metal contamination that shifted toward the microplastic-rich topsoil, with cadmium showing the strongest connection to microplastics.
Microplastics (MPs) are increasingly recognized as emerging contaminants, making a systematic understanding of the co-occurrence patterns between MPs and conventional heavy metals (HMs) essential for addressing composite environmental risks. This study investigated MP abundance, morphology, and polymer composition, together with HM concentrations and chemical speciation in greenhouse farmlands across the Anning Valley, China, spanning different cultivation histories (1–8 years) and soil depths (0–40 cm). The results revealed that longer cultivation histories were accompanied by a marked accumulation of MPs, characterized by pronounced topsoil enrichment. MPs abundance increased from 758.53 n/kg in newly cultivated plots to 3373.19 n/kg in long-term plots, with topsoil level being 2.6 times higher than those in deeper layers (2462.25 vs. 951.25 n/kg). Under long-term cultivation, heavy metal contamination escalated, and contamination hotspots shifted from deeper soil to the MP-rich topsoil. In topsoil, HM also exhibited a higher proportion of potentially mobile fractions, reflecting greater potential mobility and bioavailability. Statistical associations between MPs and HMs co-varied with soil pH, organic matter, and coarse soil fractions, indicating complex inter-relationships influenced by shared agricultural management practices. This association weakened with soil depth and varied among elements, with Cd showing the strongest relationship with MPs and becoming the dominant contributor to HM risks. These findings demonstrate that farmland MP–HM co-contamination is spatially heterogeneous and metal-specific, providing field-scale evidence for improving ecological risk assessment and soil quality management under long-term plastic use.
More Papers Like This
Residual mulch-film characteristics affect heavy metal migration of different soil layers in the subtropical croplands of China
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers surveyed 75 plastic-mulched croplands in subtropical China and found that residual mulch film abundance correlates significantly with elevated cadmium, chromium, copper, and lead concentrations in soil, suggesting that microplastics from agricultural films actively influence heavy metal mobility through adsorption processes and that longer mulching histories pose greater contamination risk.
Effect of Microplastics on the Adsorption and Desorption Properties of Cadmium in Soil
AI summary Read the abstract
Polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics were found to reduce soil's capacity to adsorb cadmium, a toxic heavy metal, raising concerns that microplastic contamination in farmland soils could increase the mobility and risk of heavy metal pollutants.
Insight into the interactions between microplastics and heavy metals in agricultural soil solution: adsorption performance influenced by microplastic types
AI summary Read the abstract
Environmental-simulating microplastics (aged under environmental conditions) showed higher cadmium and chromium adsorption capacity than commercial microplastics in agricultural soil solutions, with surface oxidation increasing adsorption—suggesting that aged microplastics are more effective co-transporters of heavy metals in contaminated agricultural soils.
Co-occurrence of soil microplastics and heavy metals in low-Cd maize remediation fields: Implications for nutrient and ecological risk of microplastics in farmland
AI summary Read the abstract
Farms in China using special low-cadmium corn and soil treatments to clean up heavy metal pollution have an unexpected side effect: tiny plastic bits (microplastics) are building up in the soil, likely from the fertilizers and farming products being used. While most fields showed low-to-moderate risk from these microplastics, some sites were creeping toward higher risk levels—meaning the very techniques designed to make farmland safer could be introducing a different kind of contamination worth watching, since microplastics in soil can end up in crops and eventually our food.
Microplastic Accumulation in Agricultural Soils with Different Mulching Histories in Xinjiang, China
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers found that microplastic accumulation in agricultural soils of Xinjiang, China increases significantly with mulching history, with fields mulched for over 20 years containing substantially more microplastics across all soil layers.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.