We can't find the internet
Attempting to reconnect
Something went wrong!
Hang in there while we get back on track
Ecological effects of microplastics contamination in soils
AI summary Read the abstract
This review examines the ecological effects of microplastic accumulation in soils, where particles can persist for decades to over a century. It covers impacts on soil structure, water retention, microbial communities, plant growth, and soil invertebrates.
Large amounts of microplastics have been accumulated in soils and their degradation is relatively slow. The residual time of microplastics in soils could be extended to decades or even over a hundred years. Therefore, the ecological effects of long-term residual of the microplastics in soils has been of concerned widely in recent years. Published papers related to the microplastics and their effects in soils were collected and introduced in order to make a full review in the field. The research advances were presented based on the different ecological receptors, which included change of soil physical environment due to the accumulation of microplastics, ingestion of microplastics by invertebrates from soils and their effects on the enteric microorganism, response of soil microbial community and soil enzyme to microplastics pollution, plant uptake of microplastics and their effects. The studies of effects on soil physical environment in the present of microplastics mainly focus on soil density, soil aggregate composition and water hold capacity. Such effects were supposed to have further impacts on soil enzyme activity, microbial community composition and even plant growth based on current limited studies. Many other studies at present were also concentrated on the migration of microplastics induced by soil invertebrates e.g. earthworm, springtail. Meanwhile, microplastics in the soil might be ingested by soil invertebrates and subsequently caused some negative effects and influence on the gut microorganism community of the soil invertebrates. There were also some studies focusing on the microplastics accumulation through food chain regarding the effects of microplastics on soil animals. For example, microplastics might be accumulated in chicken through the predation of earthworm by chicken. After the introduction of current studies, several research proposal were put forward based on the complication of microplastic’s properties and the shortage of current researches. These proposal contained four aspects: (1) development of standard protocols for the study of ecotoxicology of soil microplastics pollution, (2) studying the interaction mechanism between microplastics and microorganisms, plants and invertebrates, (3) revealing microbiological mechanisms that regulation of the transformation of materials and microplastics in soils, (4) exploring plastishere in soils of different ecosystems. All these researches are expected to be supportive to assessment of the ecological effects of soil microplastics pollution. [Ch, 80 ref.]
More Papers Like This
Recent advances on ecological effects of microplastics on soil environment
AI summary Read the abstract
This review summarizes recent advances in understanding the ecological effects of microplastics on soil environments. Researchers found that soils serve as major sinks for microplastics, which can alter soil properties, affect plant growth, disrupt soil microbial communities, and interact with other pollutants. The study highlights that terrestrial microplastic pollution may be even more pervasive than aquatic contamination and warrants greater research attention.
Microplastics as Emerging Soil Pollutants
AI summary Read the abstract
This review covers how microplastics enter and accumulate in soils, their effects on soil health, microbial communities, soil fauna, and plant growth, and the implications of widespread soil plastic contamination for ecosystem function.
Effects of microplastics on soil physical, chemical and biological properties
AI summary Read the abstract
This review examines how microplastics affect soil health, covering their impact on the physical structure, chemical composition, and biological communities of soil ecosystems. Microplastics can alter soil water retention, change nutrient cycling, and harm soil organisms from earthworms to microbes. Since agricultural soils are a major reservoir of microplastics, these changes could affect crop growth and food quality, creating an indirect pathway for microplastic-related harm to human health.
The Growing Problem of Soil Pollution with Microplastics: a Review
AI summary Read the abstract
This review examined how microplastic accumulation in soil disrupts physicochemical properties including structure, porosity, and water retention, impairs soil microbial communities, inhibits plant growth, and causes oxidative stress, with agricultural soils identified as especially vulnerable to contamination.
Ecological Effects of Soil Microplastic Pollution
AI summary Read the abstract
This review summarizes the sources, detection methods, and ecological effects of microplastic pollution in soils, covering how microplastics interact with soil ecosystems, affect organisms living in soil, and adsorb other environmental contaminants.
Research digests by email
When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.