Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Environmental health implications of plastic use in agriculture

This review discusses the environmental health implications of plastic use in agriculture, including soil microplastic accumulation from mulch films, microplastic uptake by crops, and potential entry into the food chain. The authors recommend shifting toward biodegradable alternatives and tightening regulations on agricultural plastic disposal.

2024 Open Access Government
Systematic Review Tier 1

Environmental fate and effects of mulch films on agricultural soil: A systematic review from application to residual impact

This systematic review examines how plastic mulch films used in agriculture break down over time and release microplastics into farm soil. The films improve crop growth but create lasting environmental damage as plastic fragments accumulate and alter soil properties. The findings underscore the importance of developing truly biodegradable alternatives to protect farmland from microplastic pollution.

2025 Figshare
Article Tier 2

Impact of plastic mulching as a major source of microplastics in agroecosystems

This review examines how plastic mulch films used in agriculture break down into microplastics over time, making farmland a major source of soil microplastic pollution. The accumulated microplastics can alter soil properties, affect plant growth, and be taken up by crops that humans eat. The study highlights the need for better end-of-life management of agricultural plastics and more research on how farm-sourced microplastics enter the food chain.

2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials 242 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Environmental fate and effects of mulch films on agricultural soil: A systematic review from application to residual impact

This systematic review traces the full lifecycle of plastic mulch films used in farming, from application to breakdown in soil. While these films boost crop yields, they leave behind persistent residues that fragment into microplastics, potentially contaminating soil and groundwater. The review highlights the need for biodegradable alternatives to reduce long-term microplastic accumulation in agricultural land.

2025 Figshare
Systematic Review Tier 1

Plastic Mulch Films in Arid Agroecosystems: A Systematic Review of Microplastic Generation, Transport, and Impacts

This systematic review looks at how plastic mulch films used in farming break down into microplastics that contaminate agricultural soil. These microplastics can alter soil structure, affect beneficial organisms, and potentially enter the food chain through crops grown in contaminated fields.

2026 OSF Preprints (OSF Preprints)
Article Tier 2

Nano-microplastic and agro-ecosystems: a mini-review

This review examines the growing problem of micro- and nanoplastic contamination in agricultural ecosystems, where sources include plastic mulch films, organic waste amendments, and atmospheric deposition. The study suggests that these plastic particles negatively affect soil health, microbial communities, and plant development, raising concerns about long-term impacts on food production systems.

2023 Frontiers in Plant Science 35 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Plastic Mulch Films in Arid Agroecosystems: A Systematic Review of Microplastic Generation, Transport, and Impacts

This systematic review examines how plastic mulch films used in farming break down into microplastics that contaminate agricultural soils in dry regions. While these films help crops grow by conserving water and suppressing weeds, their long-term use leaves persistent plastic pollution in the very soil used to grow food. This is particularly concerning because microplastics in agricultural soil can potentially enter the food chain.

2026 Open Science Framework
Article Tier 2

Agricultural plastics as a potential threat to food security, health, and environment through soil pollution by microplastics: Problem definition

This paper investigates how agricultural plastics -- like mulch films, greenhouse covers, and silage wraps -- break down in soil and release micro- and nanoplastic particles that can contaminate crops. The research ranks different agricultural plastic products by their risk of generating soil pollution, raising concerns about microplastics entering the human food supply through farm-grown produce.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 151 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastic Mulch‐Derived Microplastics in Agricultural Soil Systems

This review examines how plastic mulch films widely used in agriculture degrade via photodegradation, chemical processes, and microbial activity to form microplastics, and discusses how these microplastics affect soil properties, plant growth, soil microbiomes, and broader agricultural ecosystem health.

2023 4 citations
Article Tier 2

Hazards Associated with Micro/Nano Plastics in Agricultural Soils

This review examines the hazards of micro- and nanoplastic contamination in agricultural soils, where plastics enter through mulching films, irrigation with contaminated water, and fertilizer application. The authors discuss how these particles can alter soil structure, affect microbial communities, and potentially transfer into crops that humans consume. The study highlights that agricultural soil contamination with microplastics is an underrecognized risk to both ecosystem health and food safety.

2025 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Plastic mulching, and occurrence, incorporation, degradation, and impacts of polyethylene microplastics in agroecosystems

This review examines how plastic mulch films used in agriculture break down into polyethylene microplastics and what happens to them in farm ecosystems. Researchers describe how microorganisms colonize these particles and can eventually break down the plastic molecules, but also how the microplastics alter soil microbial communities and nutrient cycling. The study highlights plastic mulching as a major source of microplastic contamination in agricultural soils worldwide.

2023 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety 97 citations
Article Tier 2

Polymers Use as Mulch Films in Agriculture—A Review of History, Problems and Current Trends

This review traces the history of plastic mulch films in agriculture, from their widespread adoption for moisture retention and weed control to growing concerns about soil contamination. Researchers found that while polyethylene mulch is highly effective, its accumulation in farmland creates long-term pollution and health risks. The study examines emerging biodegradable alternatives and new regulations aimed at reducing agricultural plastic waste.

2022 Polymers 135 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in the agricultural soils: Pollution behavior and subsequent effects

This review summarizes existing research on how microplastics accumulate in farmland through fertilizers, irrigation, plastic mulch, and atmospheric fallout. Microplastics change soil structure, harm beneficial microbes, and can be taken up by crops, moving through the food chain to humans. The authors emphasize that more research is needed to understand the long-term health risks of eating food grown in microplastic-contaminated soil.

2024 Land Degradation and Development 18 citations
Article Tier 2

Micro- and nanoplastics in agricultural soils: Assessing impacts and navigating mitigation

This review summarizes how tiny plastic particles from plastic mulch films and treated sewage end up in farm soil, where they can harm soil health, change how water moves through dirt, and interfere with plant growth. Because these plastics can be absorbed by crops, there is a potential pathway for microplastics to reach humans through the food we eat.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 45 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Agriculture- a Review

This review examines the growing presence of microplastics in agricultural environments, covering their sources from plastic mulch films and irrigation water, their effects on soil health and crop quality, and the implications for food safety and sustainable agriculture.

2025 International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research
Article Tier 2

Agricultural Soils Containing Micro/Nanoplastics and Related Risks

This review surveys micro- and nanoplastic contamination in agricultural soils globally, examining input sources including plastic mulch films, irrigation water, sewage sludge, and compost, and assessing the risks MPs pose to soil organisms, plant growth, and food safety.

2025
Article Tier 2

Agricultural mulch films as soil microplastic contamination factor

This review examines agricultural mulch films as a source of soil microplastic contamination, summarizing evidence on degradation rates, particle accumulation in soil profiles, and impacts on soil properties and biological communities over time.

2024
Article Tier 2

Plastic Pollution in Agriculture as a Threat to Food Security, the Ecosystem, and the Environment: An Overview

This review examines how plastic products used in agriculture -- from mulch films to greenhouse covers -- contribute to microplastic pollution in soil, water, and crops. While plastics help boost crop production and food quality, their breakdown releases microplastics that can be taken up by plants and enter the food chain. The paper discusses strategies to reduce plastic pollution in farming, which is important because agricultural microplastics represent a direct pathway to human dietary exposure.

2024 Agronomy 177 citations
Article Tier 2

Nanoplastics and Microplastics in Agricultural Systems: Effects on Plants and Implications for Human Consumption

This review summarizes existing research on how nanoplastics and microplastics enter agricultural soil through irrigation, plastic mulch, and sewage sludge, then accumulate in crops that people eat. The particles can also carry other harmful substances like pesticides and heavy metals into plants, raising concerns about long-term health effects from chronic dietary exposure.

2025 Microplastics 12 citations
Article Tier 2

From plastic mulching to microplastic pollution : An effect assessment of microplastics in the soil-plant system

This review assessed how plastic mulching films contribute to agricultural microplastic pollution, finding that biodegradable alternatives rarely fully degrade under field conditions and instead fragment into microplastics, with both LDPE and biodegradable microplastics producing measurable ecological effects in soil-plant systems.

2021 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Health Effects and Safety Assurance of Nanoparticles in Vulnerable Generations

This review summarizes the occurrence of microplastics in agricultural soils globally, examining sources including plastic mulch films, sewage sludge, and irrigation water. Long-term accumulation is projected to reduce crop yields and alter soil microbial communities.

2022 Biological and Pharmaceutical Bulletin 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Micro and nano plastics (MNPs) in agricultural soils: challenges for food security and environmental health

This review examined how micro- and nanoplastics enter agricultural soils through sources like plastic mulch, wastewater irrigation, and sewage sludge, reaching concentrations of up to 10,000 particles per kilogram. The study found that these plastics impair plant nutrient absorption, photosynthesis, and growth, while also carrying toxic pollutants that can transfer through the food chain to humans.

2025 Environmental Monitoring and Assessment 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and nanoplastics: fate, transport, and governance from agricultural soil to food webs and humans

This review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics from agricultural sources like plastic mulch and fertilizers accumulate in soil, get taken up by plants, and enter the food chain. Many lab toxicity studies use unrealistically high plastic concentrations, but even the lower levels found in real farm fields can pose long-term cumulative risks, and major gaps remain in standardized risk assessment methods.

2025 Environmental Sciences Europe 43 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Agricultural Soil and Their Impact: A Review

This review examines how microplastics accumulate in agricultural soils through sources like plastic mulch films, sewage sludge, and fertilizers. The particles can affect soil structure, microbial activity, and plant health, with common polymer types including polyethylene, polypropylene, and polystyrene found across farmland. The study emphasizes the need for better plastic waste management to protect agricultural ecosystems from growing microplastic contamination.

2024 Nature Environment and Pollution Technology 4 citations