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Identification and characterization of microplastics contamination in domestic sewage wastewater irrigated of Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) agricultural field
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Researchers identified 291 microplastic particles across five polymer types — including PE, PP, PS, PET, and PVC — in soils of agricultural fields irrigated with domestic sewage wastewater in India, with diverse sizes, shapes, and colors observed. The study provides early evidence that sewage irrigation, a common practice in water-scarce agricultural regions, is a direct pathway for introducing durable plastic contaminants into farmland soils where they can persist and transfer into food crops.
Microplastics (MP) pollution has become a matter of an emerging global pollutant concern due to its numerous harmful effects on the ecosystem, particularly the terrestrial environment. Compared to aquatic bodies, the evidence of MP contamination in terrestrial environments has received less attention. However, despite the high likelihood of MP contamination in India, there is a paucity of available evidence from the research based study. The main sources of microplastic pollution in agricultural fields are the application of sewage sludge as fertilizers, soil mulching and sewage wastewater irrigation. The findings of this investigation offer preliminary proof that MPs contamination present in the sewage wastewater. The present study found that a total number of 291 microplastics present in all the experimented soil samples. The microplastic particles were found to be different in size, shape, and color. Microplastics particles were found to belong to five different polymer classes, including polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, polyethylene terephthalate, and polyvinyl chloride, according to chemical analyses of their composition. According to this study, MPs are a rather long-lasting result of human-induced activities that might profoundly alter terrestrial ecosystems.
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