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Impact of microplastics on soil microbiota and phosphorus dynamics - a review
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Microplastics from mulching, compost, and sewage sludge accumulate in agricultural soils and disrupt phosphate-solubilizing microbial communities while adsorbing phosphate ions onto polymer surfaces, reducing phosphorus availability and undermining soil fertility. These cascading effects on soil nutrient cycling and microbial ecology represent a serious threat to sustainable agricultural productivity as plastic pollution continues to intensify.
Plastic products are widely used in many industries due to their low cost, plasticity, and resistance to corrosion. However, they can be degraded into microplastics (MPs) via physical, chemical, and biological processes. MPs pollution threatens agricultural soils and significantly reduces soil quality and ecosystem services. The application of plastic mulching, compost, and sewage sludge contribute to this pollution, increasing MPs quantity in the soil. MPs disrupt soil microbial community, particularly phosphate-solubilizing bacteria and fungi, worsening nutrient imbalances, and lowering soil fertility. These cascading effects undermine ecosystem productivity and agricultural resilience. Moreover, MPs interfere with phosphorus (P) processes by adsorbing phosphate ions onto their surfaces, reducing P availability, and inhibiting key P-cycling enzymes. However, the effects of MPs on soil P varied depending on the MPs type, size, concentration, and exposure duration. Furthermore, their interactions with harmful chemicals and aging processes increase the complexity of environmental studies. Research on the mode of action of MPs on soil microbial communities and P dynamics in the soil is still limited. This review synthesizes current knowledge on the effect of MPs on soil microbiota, P, and essential processes like P solubilisation. Moreover, the review evaluates the impact of different MPs polymers, concentrations, and experimental duration on soil microbial community and highlights the interaction between soil microbiota and P in MP-contaminated soils. Overall, this review fills the knowledge gap regarding the dynamics of P, a topic that remains relatively underexplored in microplastics research.
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This meta-analysis found that microplastics significantly decrease phosphorus availability in soil by 7-56%, driven by particle characteristics, soil properties, and exposure duration. Microplastics alter phosphorus cycling through adsorption, changes in soil chemistry, shifts in microbial communities, and modified phosphatase activity, with implications for farmland fertility management.
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This review examines how microplastics affect soil microbial communities and the potential for microbes to degrade plastic particles in soil environments. The study highlights that soil acts as a major sink for microplastics from sources like sewage sludge, agricultural mulch, and wastewater, and identifies key knowledge gaps including the need for better monitoring of microplastic sources and exploration of microbial biodegradation potential.
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This review examines how microplastics and soil microorganisms interact: microplastics disrupt soil structure, reduce water retention, and impede plant root growth, while certain bacteria and fungi can colonize and partially degrade plastic particles through a multi-step process involving colonization, fragmentation, assimilation, and mineralization. Different polymer types (PE, PP, PS, PVC, PET) attract different microbial communities, and factors like temperature, moisture, and plastic additives affect degradation rates. Understanding these interactions is key to assessing long-term soil health impacts and developing microbial strategies to reduce plastic accumulation in agricultural soils.
Effects of microplastics on soil microorganisms and microbial functions in nutrients and carbon cycling – A review
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This review examines how microplastics in soil alter the communities of bacteria and fungi that are essential for recycling nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and carbon. Microplastics can increase certain beneficial bacteria but decrease others that are important for soil fertility, and they also carry toxic chemicals that further disrupt microbial life. The authors note that most studies are short-term lab experiments, and long-term field studies are needed to understand real-world impacts.
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