Soil erosion as transport pathway of microplastic from agriculture soils to aquatic ecosystems

Soil erosion is a potentially important source of microplastic (MP) entering aquatic ecosystems. However, little is known regarding the erosion and transport processes of MP from agricultural topsoils. The aim of this study is to analyze the erosion and transport behavior of MP during heavy rainfall events, whereas a specific focus is set to preferential MP transport and MP-soil interactions potentially leading to a more conservative transport behavior. The study is based on a series of rainfall simulations on paired-plots (4.5 m × 1.6 m) of silty loam and loamy sand located in Southern Germany. The simulations (rainfall intensity 60 mm h-1) were repeated 3 times within 1.5 years. An amount of 10 g m-2 of fine (MPf, size 53-100 μm) and 50 g m-2 of coarse (MPc, size 250-300 μm) high-density polyethylene as common polymer was added to the topsoil (<10 cm) of the plots. The experiments show a preferential erosion and transport of the MP leading to a mean enrichment ratio of 3.95 ± 3.71 (MPc) and 3.17 ± 2.58 (MPf) in the eroded sediment. There was a higher MP enrichment on the loamy sand but a higher sediment delivery on the silty loam resulting in nearly equal MP deliveries from both soil types. An increasing interaction with mineral soil particles or aggregates leads to a decreasing MP delivery over time. Within 1.5 years, up to 64% of the eroded MP particles were bound to soil particles. Overall, more of the MPc was laterally lost via soil erosion, while for the MPf the vertical transport below the plough layer was more important. In general, our study indicates that arable land susceptible to soil erosion can be a substantial MP source for aquatic ecosystems.