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Far‐Reaching Impact of Microplastics on Agricultural Systems: Options for Mitigation and Adaptation
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This systematic review examines how microplastics affect agricultural systems, from soil health and crop growth to farm animals and the food consumers eat. The research highlights that microplastic contamination in farming is widespread and may pose risks throughout the food supply chain, making it a concern for anyone who eats conventionally grown food.
ABSTRACT Microplastics has emerged as a pervasive pollutant with far‐reaching implications for agriculture. This review paper evaluates existing research on microplastics in agricultural systems, exploring their impacts on land, crop growth, farm animals, and consumer health. Using the PRISMA framework and systematic review process, 811 papers were identified in the initial search, and only 164 papers were used for this study after following the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Our study found that high‐density polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride are widely used plastic types in agriculture, followed by polypropylene, polystyrene, and polyethylene terephthalate. This prevalence is likely due to the extensive use of plastics in agriculture systems, such as for mulching, handling harvested products, bags for fertilizers and pesticides, samplings, and seed storage. The study found serious adverse consequences of microplastics on crops, animal health, soil, and consumers. It also highlights the need for comprehensive strategies to mitigate these impacts, by using bioplastics, application of treated water for irrigation, proper disposal of plastics, and following sustainable agricultural practices. Adaptation measures such as soil remediation, different microplastic removal technologies, and policy interventions emerge as a crucial strategy to cope with microplastic pollution. The paper concludes with a call for interdisciplinary research to better understand the complexities of microplastic pollution and to develop sustainable solutions to protect natural ecosystems, agricultural ecosystems, human health, and food security.
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Microplastics in the agricultural soils: Pollution behavior and subsequent effects
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This review summarizes existing research on how microplastics accumulate in farmland through fertilizers, irrigation, plastic mulch, and atmospheric fallout. Microplastics change soil structure, harm beneficial microbes, and can be taken up by crops, moving through the food chain to humans. The authors emphasize that more research is needed to understand the long-term health risks of eating food grown in microplastic-contaminated soil.
Microplastics in Agricultural Soils: An Emerging Threat to Soil Health, Microbial Ecology, Crop Productivity, and Food Safety
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This review examines how microplastics accumulate in agricultural soils from sources like plastic mulch, sewage sludge, and atmospheric deposition. Researchers found that these particles can disrupt soil microbial communities, harm plant health, and potentially enter the human food chain. The study highlights the urgent need for mitigation strategies to address this growing but often overlooked form of pollution in farmland.
Microplastics in the food chain
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This review examines how microplastics enter and move through the food chain, posing risks to animal health, human wellness, and ecosystems. Researchers found that microplastic contamination has been extensively studied in aquatic environments and marine species, but significant knowledge gaps remain regarding their accumulation and impacts in agricultural soils and plant systems. The study calls for more research on soil microplastic contamination to reduce food chain hazards.
Microplastic contamination in the agricultural soil—mitigation strategies, heavy metals contamination, and impact on human health: a review
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This review examines how microplastics contaminate agricultural soil through plastic mulch, irrigation water, and fertilizers, then alter soil chemistry, harm beneficial microorganisms, and reduce crop productivity. The authors highlight that microplastics can accumulate in crops and enter the human food chain, posing risks to food safety and human health, particularly through daily food and water consumption.
Microplastics in Agriculture- a Review
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This review examines the growing presence of microplastics in agricultural environments, covering their sources from plastic mulch films and irrigation water, their effects on soil health and crop quality, and the implications for food safety and sustainable agriculture.
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.