We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Impact of Microplastics on Forest Soil Properties in Pollution Hotspots in Alluvial Plains of Large Rivers (Morava, Sava, and Danube) of Serbia
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers sampled topsoils from three forest waste dump sites and adjacent reference sites across Serbia's largest river alluvial plains to assess how illegal waste dumping and microplastic contamination affect forest soil properties. MPs negatively impacted soil structure, chemistry, and biological activity, with effects varying by season, highlighting forest soils as an understudied sink for plastic pollution.
Plastic pollution has become a major environmental problem, while the products of its degradation, microplastics (MPs), appear everywhere on Earth. Data on MPs in agricultural soils have appeared lately, but a significant knowledge gap exists regarding forest soils. In Serbia, municipal waste is often dumped in forests, creating environmental problems that have not been documented. To explore the impact of waste dumping and MPs on forest fluvisols, we evaluated MPs from topsoils of three waste dumps and adequate visibly plastic non-contaminated forest sites located in alluviums of the largest rivers in Serbia. For assessing the influence of environmental factors on soil MPs, samples were taken in three forest vegetational seasons, in two years. The impact of MPs on soil structure, chemistry, and microbial respiration (MR) was examined. Undisturbed soil columns from uncontaminated sites with added known MP particles were used to estimate the dynamic of MP transfer through the topsoil. Large aggregate formation, soil coarse sand content, specific mass, porosity, and available P, but not MR were affected by contamination. Seasonal and annual environmental changes significantly influenced the behavior of MPs in forest luvisols. MPs effectively penetrated the deeper layers of soil columns within 3 months, with strong accumulation in the 0–10 cm layer.
More Papers Like This
Mind the gap: forest soils as a hidden hub for global micro- and nanoplastic pollution
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers examined the underappreciated role of forest soils as a global sink for micro- and nanoplastics, noting that forest canopies can intercept airborne plastic particles that then accumulate in the soil below. Despite covering a third of Earth's land surface, forest soil plastic pollution remains largely unstudied, leaving a major gap in understanding where environmental plastics ultimately end up.
Microplastic diversity, risks and soil impacts: A multi-metric assessment across land-use systems
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers surveyed microplastic abundance, polymer diversity, and ecological risk across seven land-use types in India's Brahmaputra Valley, finding that built-up areas had the highest particle counts while forest soils paradoxically showed the greatest polymer hazard scores due to high-risk polymers, and that land-use type shapes both the quantity and composition of soil microplastic contamination.
Quantifying, and assessing the impact of, microplastics in terrestrial samples
AI summary Read the abstract
Researchers developed methodologies to quantify microplastics (1 to 1000 micrometers) in terrestrial woodland environments, addressing the significant knowledge gap about microplastic concentrations and ecological impacts in soil ecosystems compared to the more extensively studied aquatic compartments.
Microplastic data on microplastics in forest soils
AI summary Read the abstract
Scientists analyzed soil from German forests and found that microplastic amounts varied widely from spot to spot, depending on things like soil chemistry and how the forest itself is structured. This matters because forests are often seen as "clean" natural areas, but this research shows plastic pollution is creeping in even there—meaning the food grown near forests and the water filtering through this soil could be affected too. This dataset itself doesn't test human health effects, but it helps build the bigger picture of how far plastic pollution has spread into our environment.
Appraisal of Microplastics in Forest Ecosystem - Sources, Migration and Mitigation
AI summary Read the abstract
This review examines microplastic pollution in forest ecosystems, discussing sources including atmospheric deposition and agricultural runoff, mechanisms of migration through soil and water, impacts on forest biodiversity and soil health, and potential mitigation strategies.
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.