Occurrence of Tire and Road Wear Particles in Urban and Peri-Urban Snowbanks, and Their Potential Environmental Implications

Tire wear particles as a source of aerosolized microplastics and their ability to act as ice nucleating particles

Tire Wear Particles' Environmental Distribution and Potential Threats to Human Health

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Researchers reviewed the environmental distribution and health hazard profile of tire wear particles, highlighting that their complex rubber-carbon black-additive matrix—particularly the chemical 6PPD-quinone, which is acutely lethal to coho salmon below 1 µg/L—distinguishes them toxicologically from conventional microplastics and demands specialized monitoring and risk assessment frameworks.

Occurrence of tire and road wear particles in urban and peri-urban snowbanks, and their potential environmental implications

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Researchers analyzed urban and peri-urban snowbanks in Norway and found significant concentrations of tire and road wear particles, confirming roads as a major source of microplastic pollution. The study is among the first to measure mass concentrations of these particles in snow, providing important data on how they accumulate and are transported in cold climates. The findings suggest that snowmelt may carry substantial loads of tire-derived microplastics into waterways each spring.

Microplastics (MPs) in urban roadside snowbanks: Quantities, size fractions and dynamics of release

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Tire wear particles and road wear particles were found to dominate microplastic contamination in urban roadside snowbanks in northern Sweden, with MPs detected across multiple size fractions. The study documented a large pulse of MP release when snowbanks melt in spring, identifying snowmelt as a seasonal point source of microplastics entering urban waterways.

Microplastics pathways in the urban environment: Urban roadside snowbanks

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Researchers sampled urban roadside snowbanks in a Canadian city and found high concentrations of microplastics, with tire wear particles and synthetic fibers most abundant. The study demonstrates that urban snowbanks accumulate microplastics throughout winter and release a pulse of contamination into waterways when they melt in spring.