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Plastic mulching in agriculture: Dual effects on soil carbon and enzyme activity versus microplastic and phthalate contamination
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Agricultural Plastic Mulching as a Source of Microplastics in the Terrestrial Conditions
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This study examined how agricultural plastic mulching — widely used to boost crop yields and conserve water — degrades and releases microplastics into surrounding terrestrial environments. Agricultural plastics represent a largely underappreciated but massive source of soil microplastic contamination, with direct implications for food crop safety and the long-term health of farmland ecosystems.
Impacts of microplastics on terrestrial soil carbon dynamics
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This synthesis shows that microplastics disrupt soil organic carbon sequestration through multiple mechanisms, including leaching dissolved organic matter, altering microbial carbon pump efficiency, and creating hotspots that modify mineral-organic matter interactions within soil aggregates. As microplastics accumulate in agricultural soils globally, their interference with carbon storage could undermine both climate mitigation efforts and the soil ecosystem services that support food production.
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Researchers found that microplastics from agricultural plastic film mulching preferentially accumulate in small soil aggregates, with fiber- and film-shaped particles dominating after long-term use, suggesting that monitoring microplastic distribution in soil aggregates can serve as a practical indicator of soil health degradation.
Mulches and Microplastic Pollution in the Agroecosystem
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Plastic polyethylene mulch films used in agriculture fragment over time into microplastics that accumulate in soil, contaminating agroecosystems and potentially entering the food supply through crop uptake and irrigation water. As plastic mulch use grows globally, so does the agricultural contribution to microplastic pollution and human dietary exposure.
Twenty-One Years of Plastic Mulching on Blueberries: Content of Microplastics and Effects on Soil Properties
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Researchers assessed soil microplastic accumulation in blueberry orchards with 6 to 21 years of plastic mulch use, finding that older fields had up to 256 microplastic items per kilogram of soil and that higher microplastic levels were associated with reduced soil nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, raising concerns about long-term agricultural soil health.
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