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Microplastics in sediments from Amazon rivers, Brazil
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Microplastics were detected in river sediments throughout the Amazon Basin near Manaus, Brazil, at concentrations up to 8,178 particles per kilogram of dry sediment, with the highest levels near shallow, slow-moving sections of the Negro River adjacent to the city. This is the first documentation of widespread microplastic contamination in the Amazon river system.
We assessed the concentrations of microplastics in sediment samples collected in seven sites from Solimões, Negro and Amazon rivers, upstream and downstream the metropolitan region of Manaus. Concentrations ranged from 417 to 8178 particles/kg of dried sediment (microplastics: 0.063-5 mm), and from 0 to 5725 particles/kg of dried sediment (microplastics: 0.063-1 mm). The highest microplastics concentrations were observed in samples from shallow water (water depth of 5-7 m) sites with lower water velocity of the Negro river surrounding Manaus, and the lowest concentration in farthest sample collected in deeper zone (water depth of 34 m) of the Amazon river around 110 km downstream Manaus. The variation of microplastics concentrations within the studied area can be related to hydraulic characteristics defining the erosive-depositional behavior of the sampling sites and their proximity to Manaus. Our results represent the first report to show the ubiquitous presence and widespread distribution of microplastics in sediments from the lower Solimões, lower Negro and upper Amazon rivers.
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.