Seasonal Variations of Microplastic Contamination in Surface Water of The Krishna River, Telangana

The distributions, chemical compositions and fate of plastics in aqua thabitats are still poorly understood, even though research on plastic contamination in freshwater and marinesystems is ongoing. This study aims to investigate the polymers of microplastic contamination in surface waters in the Krishna River. In this study, the occurrence, abundance and distribution, of micro-plastics were assessed in the surface water of Krishna River. In the Krishna River, the sites were sampled using a 50μm mesh-sized student plankton net and were analysed for micro-plastics. All the micro-plastics were secondary being derived from plastic materials utilized by the community. Plastic varieties that are found in the Krishna River, are polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polystyrene (PS) and nylon 66 (N- 66). The occurrence of micro-plastics derived from the degradation of large plastic debris implies that proper plastic waste management measures be implemented in the communities operating on the lake and in its vicinity to safeguard the ecosystem benefits derived from the lake. The description and application of analytical methods include estimations of ambient contamination during sample collecting and processing. To measure and detect micro-plastic particles, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) and Pyrolysis-gas Chromatography (PyrGC/MS) were used.