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The retention of plastic particles by macrophytes in the Amazon River, Brazil
Environmental Science and Pollution Research2024
9 citations
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Citation count from OpenAlex, updated daily. May differ slightly from the publisher's own count.
Score: 45
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0–100 AI score estimating relevance to the microplastics field. Papers below 30 are filtered from public browse.
Gabriel dos Anjos Guimarães,
Gabriel dos Anjos Guimarães,
Bruno Sampaio Sant’Anna,
Gabriel dos Anjos Guimarães,
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Gabriel dos Anjos Guimarães,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Samantha Aquino Pereira,
Gustavo Yomar Hattori,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Rômulo A. Ando
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Gustavo Yomar Hattori,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Bruno Sampaio Sant’Anna,
Rômulo A. Ando
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Gustavo Yomar Hattori,
Rômulo A. Ando
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Rômulo A. Ando
Bruno Sampaio Sant’Anna,
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Gabriel dos Anjos Guimarães,
Rômulo A. Ando
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Gustavo Frigi Perotti,
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Bruno Sampaio Sant’Anna,
Rômulo A. Ando
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Gustavo Frigi Perotti,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Gustavo Frigi Perotti,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Bruno Sampaio Sant’Anna,
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
Beatriz Rocha de Moraes,
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Bruno Sampaio Sant’Anna,
Rômulo A. Ando
Gustavo Yomar Hattori,
Gustavo Yomar Hattori,
Rômulo A. Ando
Gustavo Frigi Perotti,
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
Rômulo A. Ando
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
Rômulo A. Ando
Bruno Sampaio Sant’Anna,
Gustavo Yomar Hattori,
Rômulo A. Ando
Gustavo Yomar Hattori,
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
José Eduardo Martinelli Filho,
Rômulo A. Ando
Rômulo A. Ando
Summary
Researchers investigated whether aquatic macrophytes in the Amazon River system retain floating plastic particles, measuring the accumulation of plastic debris in plant biomass along riverbanks. The study suggests that riparian macrophytes may act as a natural but limited sink for plastic litter.
This study evaluated the presence of plastics and microplastics in macrophytes in an urbanized sector of the Amazon River. A total of 77 quadrats in 23 macrophyte banks were sampled during the dry (September 2020) and rainy (June 2021) season. Five species were identified: Paspalum repens, Pontederia rotundifolia, Pistia stratiotes, Salvinia auriculata and Limnobium laevigatum, with P. repens being dominant during the dry season (47.54%) and P. rotundifolia during the rainy season (78.96%). Most of the plastic particles accumulated in Paspalum repens (49.3%) and P. rotundifolia (32.4%), likely due to their morphological structure and volume. The dry season showed a higher accumulation of plastic particles than the rainy season. Microplastics were found in most samples, during both the dry (75.98%) and rainy seasons (74.03%). The upstream macrophyte banks retained more plastic particles compared to the downstream banks. A moderate positive correlation was observed between the presence of plastic particles and macrophyte biomass, and a weak positive correlation between the occurrence of microplastics and mesoplastics. White and blue fragments, ranging from 1 to 5 mm were the most common microplastics found in the macrophyte banks. Green fragments and green and blue fibers were identified as polypropylene, blue and red fragments as polyethylene, and white fragments as polystyrene. Therefore, the results of this study highlight the first evidence of the retention of plastic particles in macrophytes of the Amazon and highlight a significant risk due to the harmful effects that this type of plastic can cause to the fauna and flora of aquatic ecosystems.