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Potential Microplastic Threat: Environmental Assessment of The Face Mask Pollution
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Researchers assessed the environmental threat posed by face masks discarded during the COVID-19 pandemic, finding that masks contain polypropylene fibers that can fragment into microplastics and persist in the environment. The study calls for better mask disposal strategies and environmental monitoring to track mask-derived microplastic pollution.
Abstract In recent studies, many reports on the environmental effects of microplastic pollution have been presented. Countries across the world have already started carrying out studies on the restrictions of the industrial use of microplastics based on these reports. Many non-governmental organizations try to clean the existing microplastics from the oceans using their resources. However, a new source of microplastics has started to be released into nature as a result of the single-use face masks that protect us against the spread of COVID-19 and are being thrown onto the streets and into seas and nature. Before the pandemic, it was reported that more than 300 million microplastics were discharged from the province of Mersin to the eastern Mediterranean. This number will inevitably increase if not managed correctly. A mass balance needs to be studied for the correct management of waste. This study aims to estimate the amount of face mask use during the COVID-19 pandemic in Turkey, thereby expressing our concerns about waste management and plastic pollution, and calling on appropriate solid waste management policies and governments to take the necessary measures to formulate their strategies at all levels.
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This review examined how the massive global use of disposable face masks during COVID-19 has created a significant source of microplastic pollution, with billions of masks entering the environment and releasing plastic fibers and chemical contaminants.
A review of disposable facemasks during the COVID-19 pandemic: A focus on microplastics release
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This review examines the environmental threats posed by disposable face masks used during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on microplastic release. Researchers found that discarded masks undergo physical and chemical degradation in the environment, generating microplastics that contaminate both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The study provides an overview of current knowledge on microplastic extraction methods and proposes strategies for controlling mask-related plastic pollution through source reduction and improved waste management.
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Researchers found that disposable face masks release significant amounts of micro- and nanoplastic particles when subjected to water exposure and mechanical stress similar to environmental conditions. This confirms that the massive use of masks during COVID-19 introduced new sources of microplastic pollution into the environment.
Single-use surgical face masks, as a potential source of microplastics: Do they act as pollutant carriers?
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Researchers investigated whether single-use surgical face masks, widely used during the COVID-19 pandemic, are a potential source of microplastic fibers released into the environment. The study found that used masks entering uncontrolled waste streams can shed fibrous microplastics.
The COVID-19 pandemic face mask waste: A blooming threat to the marine environment.
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This review examines how single-use face masks — billions of which were discarded during the COVID-19 pandemic — contribute to microplastic and microfiber pollution in marine environments when improperly disposed of. The pandemic created a massive new source of plastic pollution, with masks breaking down into microplastics and releasing chemical contaminants in the ocean.
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.