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Solutions to Microplastics Pollution
Summary
This book chapter reviews current and emerging solutions to microplastic pollution, arguing that most research focuses on enrichment blocking while neglecting policy regulation, source substitution, and recycling approaches. It calls for comprehensive treatment strategies that address the full lifecycle of plastics rather than only end-of-pipe MP capture.
Since the first artificial plastic was introduced, the worldwide production and consumption of plastic have been continuously increasing. However, improper treatment has made a large amount of waste plastics flow into the environment. These waste plastics cannot be decomposed in the natural environment but can be divided into small pieces, i.e., microplastics (MPs), under the long-term physical, chemical, or biological effects; thus, bringing severe dangers for the ecological environment and human health. Effective treatment of MP pollution is quite urgent. However, current research on the treatment of MPs still focuses on enrichment blocking and neglects to address the MP pollution from the perspectives of policy regulation, source substitution, and recycling. Here, we comprehensively overviewed the solutions to MP pollution, including the reduction in the usage of plastics, the development of substitutable plastics such as biobased plastics or long-life/durable plastics, recycling waste plastics, as well as the remediation strategies for existing MPs in the environment. We hope that more novel technologies will be developed to successfully combat MP pollution and safeguard the planet's health and ecosystem.
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