Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Processes controlling the transportation of microplastics in agricultural soils

Researchers investigated the physical processes controlling microplastic transport through agricultural soils, examining how soil structure, water flow, bioturbation, and particle properties interact to move microplastics from surface application sites deeper into the soil profile or laterally toward aquatic systems. The study addressed the dual role of agricultural soils as both sinks and potential sources of microplastic pollution to surrounding environments.

2022
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Agricultural Soils: Sources, Fate, and Interactions with Other Contaminants

This review examines how microplastics enter farmland through irrigation, fertilizers, and plastic mulch, and how long-term farming practices affect their spread and aging in soil. The paper highlights that microplastics can either increase or decrease the toxicity of co-existing pollutants like pesticides and heavy metals depending on how strongly each contaminant binds to soil versus plastic particles.

2025 Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 10 citations
Article Tier 2

Influences of land use and depth profile on the characteristics of microplastics in agricultural soils

Researchers examined how land use and soil depth profile influence microplastic characteristics in agricultural soils, finding that wastewater and sludge application, plastic mulching, and atmospheric deposition are key sources, and that MP type and abundance vary with soil management practice and depth, highlighting the importance of vertical distribution in soil MP studies.

2025
Article Tier 2

Microplastics accumulation in agricultural soil: Evidence for the presence, potential effects, extraction, and current bioremediation approaches

This review examines the accumulation of microplastics in agricultural soils from sources like plastic mulching and irrigation, discussing their effects on soil properties and crop growth, along with current bioremediation approaches for removing soil microplastics.

2022 Journal of Applied Biology & Biotechnology 24 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic in Terrestrial Ecosystems and the Soil?

This review examined the occurrence and behavior of microplastics in terrestrial ecosystems and soils, questioning how particles move through and accumulate in soils and calling for more research on land-based microplastic impacts.

2012 Environmental Science & Technology 1520 citations
Article Tier 2

Soil Pollution from Micro- and Nanoplastic Debris: A Hidden and Unknown Biohazard

This review examines what is known about the fate and properties of microplastics and nanoplastics in soil, highlighting that agricultural land acts as a long-term sink for the ~300 million tons of plastic produced annually, with major knowledge gaps in detection and ecotoxicological effects.

2020 Sustainability 116 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic contamination in soil environment – a review

This review examines the sources, transport, degradation, and ecological impacts of microplastic contamination in soil environments. The study suggests that soil acts as both a major sink for microplastics and a conduit transporting them to aquatic systems, and that microplastics can negatively affect soil organisms and biogeochemistry, underscoring the need for more research on terrestrial microplastic pollution.

2021 Soil Science Annual 95 citations
Article Tier 2

Macro and microplastics in the soil: abundance, characterization, identification, and interactions under different land uses in an agricultural sub-basin

Researchers examined the abundance, characterization, identification, and interactions of macro- and microplastics in soils under different land uses within an agricultural sub-basin, assessing how land-use patterns influence plastic pollution distribution and potential interactions with the soil environment.

2025 LA Referencia (Red Federada de Repositorios Institucionales de Publicaciones Científicas)
Article Tier 2

The extent and impacts of soil pollution by microplastics

This study examines the extent and impacts of soil pollution by microplastics, reviewing evidence of how microplastic particles accumulate in terrestrial environments and affect soil ecosystems, organisms, and agricultural systems.

2024 SPIRE - Sciences Po Institutional REpository
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Agricultural Soil

This book chapter surveys microplastic contamination in agricultural soils, reviewing the sources of plastic inputs, concentrations found in different farming systems, and the effects of MPs on soil properties, microbial communities, and crop yields.

2025
Article Tier 2

Recent advances on ecological effects of microplastics on soil environment

This review summarizes recent advances in understanding the ecological effects of microplastics on soil environments. Researchers found that soils serve as major sinks for microplastics, which can alter soil properties, affect plant growth, disrupt soil microbial communities, and interact with other pollutants. The study highlights that terrestrial microplastic pollution may be even more pervasive than aquatic contamination and warrants greater research attention.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 322 citations
Article Tier 2

A Review on Microplastic in the Soils and Their Impact on Soil Microbes, Crops and Humans

This review examines microplastic contamination in agricultural soils, detailing how microplastic particles act as vectors for toxic organic pollutants and heavy metals, disrupting soil physicochemical properties, microbial communities, crop growth, and ultimately entering the human food chain.

2022 International Journal of Research -GRANTHAALAYAH 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Activities of Microplastics (MPs) in Agricultural Soil: A Review of MPs Pollution from the Perspective of Agricultural Ecosystems

This review summarizes the origins, migration, and fate of microplastics in agricultural soil ecosystems, identifying plastic mulch film, irrigation water, and organic fertilizers as major sources. The study highlights that microplastic accumulation in farmland can affect soil structure, microbial communities, and crop growth, with potential implications for food safety through the terrestrial food chain.

2022 Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry 210 citations
Article Tier 2

Soil Environment Pollution with Microplastic, Influence Factors and Environmental Risks

This review synthesizes research on microplastic contamination of soil environments, covering the major sources of soil microplastics, factors influencing their accumulation and distribution, and the environmental risks they pose to terrestrial ecosystems and agriculture.

2023 Ecology and Industry of Russia 3 citations
Article Tier 2

Impact of Different Soil Tillage Practices on Microplastic Particle Abundance and Distribution

Field experiments across different tillage and fertilization regimes quantified microplastic abundance and vertical distribution in agricultural soils, finding that tillage practices significantly influenced how deeply microplastics are mixed through the soil profile.

2025 Soil Systems
Article Tier 2

Microplastics transport in soils: A critical review

Researchers reviewed how microplastics move through soil, finding that their transport depends on a complex mix of particle properties, soil chemistry, water flow, and biological activity — and that these factors often interact in ways that produce contradictory results across studies. The review maps these knowledge gaps and calls for more controlled experiments to predict where microplastics accumulate and how they might reach groundwater or crops.

2025 Earth-Science Reviews 17 citations
Article Tier 2

Significance of Microplastics in Agricultural Soil

This review examines the significance of microplastic contamination in agricultural soils, estimating it contributes approximately 20% of total plastic pollution in terrestrial ecosystems. Microplastics enter farmland through irrigation, mulch, and sewage sludge, and can be transported deeper into soil by plant roots and soil organisms. The accumulation of microplastics in agricultural land poses risks to soil health and the food grown in it.

2023 Journal of Agronomy Technology and Engineering Management (JATEM) 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in agricultural soils: a new challenge not only for agro-environmental policy?

This review addresses microplastic pollution in agricultural soils, identifying farming practices like mulching and sludge application as significant sources and discussing potential impacts on soil health and food safety. It calls for both policy action and more research on microplastic behavior in terrestrial environments.

2019 AgEcon Search (University of Minnesota, USA) 5 citations
Article Tier 2

The Growing Problem of Soil Pollution with Microplastics: a Review

This review examined how microplastic accumulation in soil disrupts physicochemical properties including structure, porosity, and water retention, impairs soil microbial communities, inhibits plant growth, and causes oxidative stress, with agricultural soils identified as especially vulnerable to contamination.

2025
Article Tier 2

Impact of microplastics on terrestrial ecosystems: A plant-centric perspective

This review focuses on how microplastics affect plants and soil health in agricultural settings, an area that has received less attention than marine microplastic pollution. The researchers describe how microplastics can alter soil structure, disrupt microbial communities, and enter plant tissues through unique transport mechanisms. The study highlights that agricultural soils are a major sink for microplastics, with potential consequences for food safety and crop productivity.

2024 Environmental Pollution and Management 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in terrestrial environments: Reviewing current understanding to determine the positive and negative aspects of soil

This review examines microplastics in terrestrial soils, covering their sources, distribution, and effects on soil health and organisms. It finds both negative impacts on soil function and organisms, as well as some neutral or context-dependent effects, and identifies key areas for future research.

2023 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Environmental fate and impacts of microplastics in soil ecosystems: Progress and perspective

This review summarized knowledge on microplastics in soil environments, covering occurrence across agricultural, industrial, and urban soils, transport pathways, and ecological risks to soil organisms and plant communities. The authors identify key data gaps and methodological challenges that currently limit understanding of microplastic fate and impact in terrestrial systems.

2019 The Science of The Total Environment 509 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution in terrestrial ecosystems: Global implications and sustainable solutions

This review examines microplastic pollution in terrestrial ecosystems, an area that has received far less attention than ocean plastic pollution despite soil being a major sink for these contaminants. The study covers how microplastics interact with other soil pollutants, affect plant growth and soil health, and discusses both policy solutions and practical removal methods to reduce the amount of microplastics that enter the food chain.

2023 Journal of Hazardous Materials 182 citations
Article Tier 2

Effect of microplastics used in agronomic practices on agricultural soil properties and plant functions: Potential contribution to the circular economy of rural areas

Researchers measured the effects of microplastics used in common agricultural practices — including mulch film residues and irrigation-delivered particles — on soil physical, chemical, and biological properties. Microplastic presence altered soil aggregation, water retention, and microbial community composition, with effects depending on plastic concentration, polymer type, and soil texture.

2024 Waste Management & Research The Journal for a Sustainable Circular Economy 5 citations