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Distribution, Characterization and Risk Assessment of Microplastics in Two Rivers in West Central Scotland: The Black Cart Water and White Cart Water
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Researchers investigated microplastics in surface water and sediment from 25 locations across the Black Cart Water and White Cart Water in Scotland, finding MPs in four water samples and sediment concentrations ranging from 33.3 to 600 items per kilogram. Fragment-shaped and white/transparent particles were most common, with PP, PE, and PET as dominant polymers, and while polymer hazard index was high at some locations, overall ecological risk was assessed as generally low.
Improved understanding of the behaviour of microplastics in freshwater systems is important as rivers are major conduits for the transport of particles from land to sea. This study investigated microplastics in two tributaries of the River Clyde, Scotland, UK, that flow through rural, suburban and urban areas. Surface water and sediment were obtained from 25 locations in the Black Cart Water and White Cart Water. Microplastics were isolated and characterized by digital microscopy and ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. Particles were found in four water samples, all from the White Cart. Sediment analysis revealed microplastic abundance ranging from 300 to 600 items/kg in the Black Cart and 33.3 to 567 items/kg in the White Cart. Fragments were the most common particle type and white/transparent the most common particle colour. The most common polymers in the Black Cart were PP > PET > PS > PVC > PTFE and in the White Cart PE > PP > PTFE > PET > PA. Identification of some microplastics was challenging because their FTIR spectra did not correspond well to reference spectra of pure polymers. Although the polymer hazard index at some locations was high due to the presence of particles composed of PVC and PA, the ecological risk from microplastics in the Cart river system was generally low.
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Distribution, Characterization and Risk Assessment of Microplastics in Two Rivers in West Central Scotland: The Black Cart Water and White Cart Water
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Researchers collected surface water and sediment from 25 locations across the Black Cart Water and White Cart Water tributaries of the River Clyde in Scotland, using digital microscopy and ATR-FTIR to characterize microplastics, finding particles in only four water samples (all from the White Cart) but widespread sediment contamination across both rivers.
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Researchers characterized microplastic abundance, morphology, and polymer composition in surface water and sediments from the lower Minjiang River in China, then used pollution load indices and ecological risk assessments alongside socioeconomic data to identify likely pollution sources and ecological impacts.
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Researchers conducted a comprehensive review of microplastic occurrence in freshwater ecosystems and performed the first probabilistic environmental risk assessment for specific polymer types. They established predicted no-effect concentration values for polystyrene and polyethylene and calculated risk quotients suggesting that current microplastic levels in most freshwater environments pose a low ecological risk.
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This review synthesizes global data on microplastic sources, identification methods, distribution in rivers, and ecological impacts, covering studies from the past two decades. It finds MPs widespread in riverine systems (up to 120 MPs/L in water, 13,607 MPs/kg in sediment), with FTIR and Raman spectroscopy as dominant identification tools and PE/PP fibers and fragments as the most common polymer types.
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