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Microplastics affect C, N, and P cycling in natural environments: Highlighting the driver of soil hydraulic properties
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This study found that common microplastics like polyethylene and polypropylene significantly change how soil handles water and nutrients by increasing water content, reducing soil density, and altering bacterial communities involved in nitrogen and carbon cycling. These changes affected how nutrients are stored in soil, with increases of 12 to 93 percent in nitrogen and carbon storage depending on the plastic type and amount. The findings suggest microplastic pollution could disrupt the fundamental soil processes that support food production.
As microplastics (MPs) are organic polymers with a carbon-based framework, they may affect nutrient cycling. Information regarding how MPs influence N, P, and C cycling and the underlying driving force remains lacking. N, P, and C cycling induced by soil hydraulic properties under MPs exposure (including polyethylene (PE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polystyrene (PS), polypropylene (PP)) in the natural environment were investigated in this study. MPs exposure increased the soil water content (11.2-84.5%) and reduced bulk density (11.4-42.8%); soil saturated hydraulic conductivity increased by 7.3-69.4% under PP and PE exposure. MPs exposure led to increases in available phosphorus, NO-N, NH-N, and soil organic matter; the bacterial communities related to N and C cycling were significantly changed. Expression levels of soil N and C cycling-related genes were enhanced under low concentrations (0.5% and 2%) of MPs, except PVC; consequently, soil nitrogen storage and organic carbon storage increased by 12-75% and 6.7-93%, respectively. Correlation analyses among soil hydraulic properties, bacterial communities, and functional genes related to nutrient cycling revealed that soil hydraulic properties (including soil water content, saturated water capacity, and soil saturated hydraulic conductivity) were the dominant factors affecting soil N and C storage under MPs exposure.
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