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Microplastics in Como Creek, Green Lake 4, and Solifluction Lobes 2023.
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Researchers sampled three surface water sites within the Niwot Long-Term Ecological Research area in Colorado's Front Range for atmospheric microplastic deposition, finding microplastics in these remote high-altitude ecosystems and calling for expanded monitoring as warming climates may increase deposition rates.
Microplastics are known to persist in remote regions of the Colorado Front Range through atmospheric deposition. Although plastics are introduced by wet deposition, high rates of deposition are driven by dry deposition. With a warming climate, microplastic deposition may increase with unknown consequences for the ecological health of remote ecosystems. To assess the risk of microplastic distribution in remote regions, monitoring of environmental compartments is needed. To this end, we sampled three surface waters within the Niwot LTER for microplastics using a peristaltic in-line filtration sampling pump.
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Researchers investigated microplastic transport to and accumulation in high-mountain lakes in remote ecosystems, using atmospheric deposition measurements and lake sediment analysis. Even at elevations above human habitation, microplastics were deposited from the atmosphere, with concentrations tracking regional air circulation patterns.
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Researchers found microplastic particles in dust-on-snow samples from the Upper Colorado River Basin collected between 2013 and 2016, providing early evidence that atmospheric deposition delivers microplastics to mountain snowpack. These particles join mineral dust in reducing snow reflectivity, potentially accelerating snowmelt and affecting regional water supplies.
Investigating microplastic transport in remote ecosystems: High-mountain lakes of the western alps
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Researchers investigated microplastic transport in high-mountain lakes in a remote region, examining how atmospheric deposition and watershed processes deliver plastic particles to these sensitive and isolated ecosystems. Microplastics were detected in lake water and sediments, confirming that long-range atmospheric transport is a significant delivery pathway to remote alpine environments.
Evidence of microplastics in remote alpine lakes of the eLTER network
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Researchers detected microplastics in two remote alpine lakes of the European Long-Term Ecological Research (eLTER) network, providing the first evidence of MP contamination in these high-altitude freshwater systems. Atmospheric deposition was identified as the likely transport pathway to these geographically isolated ecosystems.
High-mountain lakes as indicators of microplastic pollution: current and future perspectives
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This review assessed microplastic pollution in high-mountain lakes, finding these remote ecosystems serve as valuable indicators of atmospheric microplastic transport and global contamination patterns despite limited research to date.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.