Wastewater Discharge Transports Riverine Microplastics over Long Distances
Environmental Science & Technology2024
5 citations
?
Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count.
Score: 45
?
0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Zhao‐Feng Guo,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Barbara Leoni
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Yuqin He,
Cai Chen,
Cai Chen,
Veronica Nava,
Veronica Nava,
Veronica Nava,
Veronica Nava,
Veronica Nava,
Veronica Nava,
Veronica Nava,
Veronica Nava,
Veronica Nava,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Barbara Leoni
Barbara Leoni
Zhao‐Feng Guo,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Dong Liu,
Dong Liu,
Dong Liu,
Barbara Leoni
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Veronica Nava,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Barbara Leoni
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Yaoyang Xu,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Barbara Leoni
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Yaoyang Xu,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Yaoyang Xu,
Tim van Emmerik,
Barbara Leoni
Zhao‐Feng Guo,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Veronica Nava,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Barbara Leoni
Win Cowger,
Barbara Leoni
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Yaoyang Xu,
Cai Chen,
Barbara Leoni
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Barbara Leoni
Barbara Leoni
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Barbara Leoni
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Veronica Nava,
Yaoyang Xu,
Zhao‐Feng Guo,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Yuqin He,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Dong Liu,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Dong Liu,
Zhao‐Feng Guo,
Yaoyang Xu,
Zhao‐Feng Guo,
Win Cowger,
Yuqin He,
Win Cowger,
Win Cowger,
Yaoyang Xu,
Cai Chen,
Yaoyang Xu,
Win Cowger,
Barbara Leoni
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Veronica Nava,
Yaoyang Xu,
Barbara Leoni
Yaoyang Xu,
Barbara Leoni
Barbara Leoni
Yaoyang Xu,
Yaoyang Xu,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Tim van Emmerik,
Win Cowger,
Barbara Leoni
Tim van Emmerik,
Veronica Nava,
Win Cowger,
Barbara Leoni
Barbara Leoni
Summary
This study demonstrated that wastewater discharge transports riverine microplastics over long distances downstream, with treatment plant effluent contributing significantly to the total microplastic load in receiving rivers.
Study Type
Environmental
Wastewater discharge from wastewater treatment plants continuously pumps microplastics into rivers, yet their transport distances within these waterways remain unknown. Herein, we developed a conceptual framework by synthesizing the microplastic data from the Yangtze River Basin to evaluate its transport distances, quantifying a significant spatial dependence between large-scale wastewater discharge and riverine microplastics (<i>p</i> < 0.05). The presence of microplastics at a specific sampling site could be attributed to wastewater discharge within a large-scale range spanning >1000 km upstream, encompassing a substantial portion equivalent to one-third of the Yangtze River Basin. The dominance analysis indicated that the contribution of wastewater discharge in rivers with higher discharge (>100 m<sup>3</sup>/s) to riverine microplastic pollution exceeded 65% within the Yangtze River Basin. The spatial dependence framework of riverine microplastics on wastewater discharge advances our prior understanding of the prevention and control of riverine microplastics by demonstrating that such pollution is not limited to nearby environmental factors.