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Pollution: Do microplastics spill on to farm soils?
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Microplastics in Agricultural Soils
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Researchers reviewed what is known about microplastic contamination in agricultural soils, noting that despite hundreds of millions of tonnes of plastic entering the environment annually, very little is understood about how microplastics persist, migrate, and affect soil ecosystems. This knowledge gap is concerning given that contaminated soil directly affects food crops consumed by humans.
How microplastics are making their way into our farmland
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This commentary argues that wastewater treatment plants are a primary pathway for microplastics entering Canadian farmland through biosolid application, calling for closer monitoring and reduction of microplastics in the wastewater stream. Agricultural soil microplastic accumulation is a growing concern because it contaminates crops, disrupts soil ecosystems, and creates a diffuse pathway for plastic particles to enter the human food supply.
Hazards of Microplastic Pollution in Agriculture
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This review examined the sources and hazards of microplastic pollution in agricultural settings, including plastic mulch degradation, sewage sludge application, and plastic packaging, and their effects on soil health and crop systems. Agricultural microplastic exposure is especially significant for human health because it creates a direct farm-to-table contamination pathway, with particles and leached chemicals potentially present in vegetables, grains, and livestock products.
Microplastics in Soil: An Emerging Threat
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Researchers reviewed the emerging problem of microplastic pollution in soil, tracing contamination to agricultural practices, industrial activities, and atmospheric deposition, and examining downstream risks to ecosystem health and human well-being.
Plastic pollution: European farmland could be largest global reservoir of microplastics
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European farmland may represent the world's largest reservoir of environmental microplastics, with an estimated 42,000 tonnes of microplastics deposited annually via sewage sludge used as agricultural fertilizer, ultimately washing back into waterways. This finding implicates wastewater treatment practices as a major driver of terrestrial microplastic accumulation and downstream contamination of food crops and drinking water sources.
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