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Fate of microplastics in sewage sludge and in agricultural soils
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Researchers reviewed how microplastics accumulate in sewage sludge at wastewater treatment plants and then spread into agricultural soils when that sludge is applied as fertilizer, finding that sludge treatment processes can alter microplastic size and shape but do not eliminate them. The review calls for standardized methods to study how different sludge treatments affect microplastic properties and their downstream risks to soil health.
The aim of this study was to review microplastics (MPs) occurrence in sewage sludge from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and assess implications of sludge application to agricultural soils. Sludge is a main sink for MPs in WWTPs, highlighting the importance of sludge as a route for environmental exposure. Sludge application on agricultural fields is associated with elevated MP concentrations in soils, potentially affecting soil health. However, prior to application sludge treatments may alter MP abundance and MPs properties, such as shape and size, subsequently affecting environmental risk. Knowledge gaps still exist regarding sludge treatments and their effect on MPs (size, shape abundance). Further investigation is needed to assess the risk of MPs exposure at WWTPs, explore the effects of sludge treatments on soil health, and to better understand how management at WWTPs, and in agricultural systems, affect MP properties.
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This review summarizes current research on microplastic occurrence, removal, and fate in wastewater treatment plants, noting that while plants capture most microplastics in activated sludge, significant numbers still escape into effluent. The sludge itself then becomes a major pathway for microplastics to enter agricultural soils when applied as fertilizer. Future treatment improvements and sludge management policies are needed to reduce these release pathways.
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Researchers systematically reviewed 65 studies on microplastics in sewage sludge and biosolids from wastewater treatment plants around the world. They found that while treatment processes remove 57% to 99% of microplastics from wastewater, the removed particles concentrate in sludge that is often applied to agricultural land. The review highlights that land application of biosolids may be a significant, underappreciated pathway for microplastic pollution in soils.
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Researchers review how microplastics enter wastewater sludge from laundry, personal care products, and urban runoff and then migrate into agricultural soils when sludge is land-applied, where they persist for years, alter soil structure, suppress microbial activity, and facilitate the spread of co-pollutants and antibiotic resistance genes.
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This review examines the presence and fate of microplastics in sewage sludge from municipal wastewater treatment plants, a topic that has received less attention than microplastics in the water treatment line. The study highlights that agricultural application of sewage sludge is a primary source of microplastic contamination in soils, and provides a comprehensive overview of detection methods, concentrations, and the environmental implications of sludge-borne microplastics.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.