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Here, There, and Everywhere: The Problem with Microplastics in Water and What Women Scientists Are Doing to Solve It
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This article profiles women scientists working on microplastic pollution in water, highlighting their contributions to understanding how plastics break down and contaminate freshwater and marine environments. It serves as both a science communication piece and a celebration of women in environmental science.
Plastics — ubiquitous material we cannot seem to live without — are everywhere, but sadly we cannot live with plastics either, at least not peaceably, especially when you consider there will be more plastics in the ocean than fish by 2050. In the intervening years, the photodegradation of plastic resulting in microplastics pollution will be an even bigger problem, affecting every living creature in the ocean, and by extrapolation, mankind. The choices we make and the steps we take to combat the overabundance of plastics in our environment will dictate not just the next 30 years, but the fate of the world thereafter. This is not science fiction, but modern life. This article discusses the microplastics problem and some potential solutions.
More Papers Like This
Water Pollution by Microplastics and Nanoplastics
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This Croatian thesis reviews research on microplastic and nanoplastic contamination in both freshwater and marine environments worldwide. The author discusses detection methods, environmental concentrations, ecological effects, and the challenge of removing these particles from water systems.
Pollution to Solution: Understanding and Addressing Microplastic Contamination in the Environment
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This review synthesizes current knowledge on how microplastics and nanoplastics are distributed across freshwater and marine environments, how they interact with and are taken up by aquatic organisms, and what removal technologies show the most promise. It covers the full lifecycle from macroplastic fragmentation to nano-scale particles, and surveys physical, chemical, and biological treatment methods. The review provides a useful overview for researchers and environmental managers looking to understand the scope of the microplastic problem and identify where interventions are most needed.
Microplastics in aquatic environment: Challenges and perspectives
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This review provides a comprehensive overview of microplastic pollution in water environments, covering sources, transport, health effects, detection methods, and control strategies. Microplastics enter waterways from everyday plastic products, industrial discharge, and wastewater treatment plants, where aquatic organisms ingest them and pass them up the food chain. The review highlights the urgent need for better analytical techniques and global policies to reduce microplastic contamination that ultimately reaches human food and drinking water.
Microplastics in the Aquatic Environment: Overview of the Problem and Current Research Areas
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This review summarizes the current state of microplastic research in aquatic environments, covering sources, distribution, ecological impacts, and knowledge gaps. The paper identifies priority research areas needed to better understand and manage microplastic contamination in water bodies.
Plastic pollution in marine and freshwater biota
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Researchers compiled a special issue reviewing the current science on plastic pollution — including micro- and nanoplastics — in marine and freshwater environments, identifying key gaps in understanding how these particles move through ecosystems and harm aquatic life. The collection aims to support stronger science-based environmental policies addressing plastic pollution in aquatic systems.
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.