Kan fiskar spela fotboll? : Närliggande vattendrag som möjlig spridningsvägför gummigranulat från konstgräsplaner i Halmstad kommun

Artificial turf pitches have been identified as the second largest source of microplastics in the IVL's 2016 research report. The purpose of this study is to explore whether watercourses in the vicinity of artificial turfs are a likely distribution route for rubber granulates. Also in what size fraction rubber granules is most dominant compared to the natural substrate is investigated. To investigate this, sediment samples from 4 different streams have been taken; 2 near artificial turfs and 2 further away. These have been analyzed in microscopes where each rubber fraction relative to the gravel grain was counted in filter sizes 0- 5 μm, 5-10 μm and 10- 35 μm. The result shows that there is a significantly higher incidence of rubber fragments in watercourses near artificial turfs compared to those of further afield. In the size fraction 10- 35 μm, rubber fragments were most dominant in proportion to gravel. The study thus shows that adjacent watercourses can be a spreading source of artificial turf granules, and that animals that filter or eat particles of size 10- 35 μm run the highest risk of absorbing large quantities of rubber.