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Release of Microplastics from Urban Wastewater Treatment Plants to Aquatic Ecosystems in Acapulco, Mexico
Summary
Three wastewater treatment plants in Acapulco, Mexico removed 83–99% of incoming microplastics, yet still released between 9.5 million and 470 million plastic particles into receiving waterways every single day due to the massive volume of water processed. With common polymers like polyethylene, polypropylene, PET, and PVC identified in effluents, the study highlights that even high-efficiency treatment is insufficient to prevent large-scale microplastic loading of aquatic environments without dedicated regulatory limits.
Contamination of aquatic ecosystems by microplastics (MPs) is mainly due to the release of high levels of MP particles from treated effluents by wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Due to the lack of policies and regulations establishing criteria for the control and elimination of MPs from WWTP effluents, this research evaluates the presence of 38 and 150 µm MPs in influents and effluents from three WWTPs in the port of Acapulco, Mexico. Optical microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed that the MPs were polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, and polyvinyl chloride. MP removal efficiencies of 82.5–98.7% (38 µm) and 86.8–97.5% (150 µm) were achieved. Moreover, the MP average daily emissions to the receiving bodies of the three WWTPs ranged from 9.5 × 106 to 4.70 × 108 particles, while the annual emissions ranged from 3.05 × 109 to 1.72 × 1011 particles. This work reveals the urgency of implementing regulatory policies to avoid the continuous emission of MPs into aquatic ecosystems from WWTPs in Acapulco, Mexico.
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