The Source, Distribution Characteristics,and Migration Behavior of Microplastic Pollutionin Soil Environment in China: A Review

Pollution from microplastics (plastics<5 mm, MPs) has been recognized relatively recently as one of the most urgent and pervasive global environmental problems of the 21st century.MPs are organic particles that are typically characterized by small sizes (m range), complex molecular structures, prolonged environmental persistence, and strong sorption onto other organic contaminants.The main sources of MPs in the soil environment include plastic film planting, sewage irrigation, and organic fertilizer or sludge applications.These agronomic practices are meant to enhance crop productivity for a hungry world.Ironically, misuse of the same practices can adversely impact human and ecosystem health.Soil MPs do not only change the physical and chemical properties of soil, but also have ecological effects on soil flora, fauna, and microbial communities.Furthermore, MPs can serve as additional carriers of pollutants in soil environments.This paper is a review of current knowledge about the occurrence, abundance, and distribution of MPs in Chinese soils, with brief mentions of parallel global viewpoints on the topics.Mechanistic aspects of migration behavior, factors that influence such behaviors, and prospects for remediating adverse impacts of MPs in soils are reviewed.