To what extent are wastewater treatment systems a gateway for microplastic particles in the aquatic and terrestrial environments?

Sewage treatment plants are designed to handle wastes that include several types of pollutants, including microplastics (MPs), which are synthetic polymer materials fragmented to sizes < 5 mm. Investigating the abundance and removal efficiency rates of MPs in wastewater treatment plants is important because the water body to which plant effluents are discharged may be adversely affected by the released MPs. Therefore, the abundance, characteristics, and removal of MPs at two sewage treatment plants located on the southwest coast of Norway are studied. Twenty-four samples were collected across two sampling sessions by using an ad hoc-designed plastic-free water sampling device, which was improved by applying a cascade of certified stainless-steel sieves. A combined sequence of enzymatic and strong oxidative incubations was performed for sample preparation. The obtained samples were chemically characterized and quantified using thermoanalytical techniques. The overall amounts of polymers in the inlet wastewater and outlet water were 366-616 μg/L and 34-57 μg/L, respectively, indicating an approximate MPs removal efficiency of 78%-85%. Polyethylene (≈ 36%-68%), polypropylene (≈ 7%-48%), polystyrene (≈ 5%-6%), polyvinyl chloride (≈ 15%-26%), polyamide (≈ 2%), polymethacrylate (≈ 3%-4%), polycarbonate (≈ 2%), and polyethylene terephthalate (≈ 9%-32%) were detected in the investigated samples. In biosolids, the overall quantity of MPs was 3.8-5.5 mg/g dry weight across the two investigated sewage treatment plants. Polyethylene (≈ 24%-44%), followed by polyvinyl chloride (PVC) (≈ 11%-16%), and polyamide (≈ 2%-22%) were the most commonly recurring polymer types. The outcomes of this study indicate that MPs are removed efficiently from wastewaters. However, large amounts of MPs accumulate in biosolids. Therefore, sludge dumping management procedures need to be improved to lower the amount of MPs released into the environment through effluents and biosolids.