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The rapid increases in microplastics in urban lake sediments
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Researchers used sediment cores from an urban lake in Wuhan, China, combined with high-resolution dating techniques, to track microplastic accumulation over the past 60 years. They found that microplastic abundance increased more than tenfold, from 741 to 7,707 items per kilogram, with fibers from textiles being the dominant type. The study suggests that microplastics could serve as geological markers of the Anthropocene era, similar to fossils in the sediment record.
Abstract Microplastics have received widespread attention as an emerging global pollutant. However, the research on the abundance and characteristics of microplastics entering the environment throughout history has been limited. Meanwhile, the determination of the start of the Anthropocene is important because humans have become a vital force affecting the environment and Earth surface processes. It is unclear whether the plastic can be used as an artefact to indicate the start of the Anthropocene. In this study, combined with 137 Cs, 210 Pb, and spherical carbonaceous particles (SCP) high-resolution chronology, a microplastics-time curve was established by using the sedimentary record from an urban lake in Wuhan city. The microplastic abundance increased from 741 items·kg −1 to 7707 items·kg −1 over the past 60 years. The microplastics were mainly fibres and composed of polyester and rayon polymers, which indicated that the microplastics most likely originated from textiles. The surfaces of the older microplastics were rough and weathered with many absorbed elements. Microplastics are similar to fossils belonging to the Anthropocene, and may be used as an indicator. The comparison of microplastic-time curves in different records on a global scale will be necessary in the future.
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Researchers reviewed global data on microplastic deposits in lake and ocean sediment cores, arguing that microplastics have the potential to serve as a geological marker for the Anthropocene — the human-dominated era — because they are widespread, persistent, and tightly linked to human industrial activity. Alpine lake sediments are recommended as ideal sites for this research due to their stable, high-resolution depositional records.
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