Papers

61,005 results
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Article Tier 2

Can microplastics pose a threat to ocean carbon sequestration?

This paper explores whether microplastic pollution in the ocean could interfere with carbon sequestration processes, including the biological carbon pump that moves carbon to the deep sea through sinking organic matter. If microplastics disrupt phytoplankton, zooplankton, or marine snow formation, they could undermine one of the ocean's key roles in regulating global climate.

2019 Marine Pollution Bulletin 247 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Pollution in Oceans: A Barrier to Achieve Low Carbon Society

Microplastics in the ocean are not just a pollution problem — they may also impair the ocean's ability to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, undermining one of Earth's most important climate regulators. This review examines how ocean microplastic pollution interferes with carbon sequestration processes and argues that reducing plastic production and improving waste management are essential steps for both climate and environmental health.

2023 IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Recent advances in the research on effects of micro/nanoplastics on carbon conversion and carbon cycle: A review

This review examines how microplastics and nanoplastics are disrupting the global carbon cycle, the natural process that moves carbon through the environment. Microplastics interfere with the microorganisms that help convert and store carbon, and they reduce the ability of oceans and coastal ecosystems to absorb carbon dioxide. These disruptions could worsen climate change, which in turn affects food production and human well-being.

2023 Journal of Environmental Management 92 citations
Article Tier 2

From pollution to ocean warming: The climate impacts of marine microplastics

This review examined the largely overlooked role of marine microplastics in driving climate change, covering how they disrupt oceanic carbon pumps, alter biogeochemical cycling, and directly emit greenhouse gases during UV degradation. The authors found that microplastics reduce the efficiency of the biological carbon pump by impairing marine organisms that sequester carbon, creating a feedback loop between plastic pollution and ocean warming.

2025 Journal of Hazardous Materials Plastics
Article Tier 2

Soil carbon cycling mediated by microplastics: Formation, mineralization, and sequestration

This review examines how microplastic pollution affects soil organic carbon cycling, covering direct participation in carbon processes and indirect effects on soil physicochemical properties and microbial communities. The authors synthesize mechanisms by which microplastics influence organic carbon formation, mineralization, and sequestration in terrestrial ecosystems.

2024 Scientia Sinica Technologica 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic effects on carbon cycling processes in soils

Researchers reviewed how microplastics affect carbon cycling processes in soils, including their influence on microbial activity, plant growth, and litter decomposition. Since microplastics are themselves carbon-based materials, they can directly alter soil carbon stocks while also indirectly shifting microbial communities. The study calls for a major research effort to understand the widespread effects of microplastics on soil functioning and terrestrial ecosystem health.

2021 PLoS Biology 503 citations
Article Tier 2

The impact of microplastics on marine life and ecosystems

This paper reviewed the sources, distribution, and ecological impacts of microplastics in marine ecosystems, where particles originating from both fragmented debris and consumer products like personal care products are now found throughout the worlds oceans. The review examined effects on marine organisms across multiple levels of the food chain.

2024 International Journal of Advanced Academic Studies 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Carbon Cycling in Wetlands Under the Shadow of Microplastics: Challenges and Prospects

This review examines how microplastics disrupt carbon cycling in wetlands, which are critical ecosystems for capturing and storing carbon that would otherwise contribute to climate change. Microplastics can damage plant roots, alter soil microbial communities, and accelerate the breakdown of stored organic carbon, leading to increased greenhouse gas emissions. The findings highlight that microplastic pollution may undermine wetlands' ability to help regulate the climate.

2025 Toxics 8 citations
Article Tier 2

Distinct impacts of microplastics on the carbon sequestration capacity of coastal blue carbon ecosystems: A case of seagrass beds

Researchers examined how microplastic pollution affects the ability of seagrass beds to capture and store carbon, a process important for combating climate change. Evidence indicates that microplastics can alter sediment properties, disrupt microbial communities, and inhibit seagrass growth, all of which reduce carbon storage capacity. The study highlights that microplastic contamination may be undermining one of nature's key tools for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

2024 Marine Environmental Research 6 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and its Impact on Oceanic Environment

This review examines the impact of microplastics on oceanic ecosystems, covering the mechanisms by which they harm aquatic life through ingestion and entanglement, and discusses potential strategies for reducing contamination. It emphasizes that continuous plastic production combined with poor waste management is driving an escalating ocean pollution crisis.

2018 Research & Reviews: A Journal of Biotechnology
Article Tier 2

Marine Microplastic Pollution

This review examines microplastic pollution in marine ecosystems, summarizing the sources, distribution, and ecological effects of plastic particles in ocean environments and reviewing evidence for harm to marine organisms from physical ingestion and chemical exposure.

2025
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in marine ecosystems: Sources, effects, and mitigation strategies

This review examines the sources, environmental pathways, ecological impacts across trophic levels, and mitigation strategies for microplastic pollution in marine ecosystems, synthesizing current evidence on biological harm and evaluating policy frameworks, technological solutions, and individual behavioral changes aimed at reducing marine microplastic loads.

2022 International Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Studies 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Assessing the effect of microplastics on the marine ecosysteḿs carbon sequestration potential in life cycle assessment

Microplastics don't just pollute the ocean — they may also be undermining the ocean's ability to absorb carbon dioxide. This study developed a method to quantify how microplastics impair the growth of marine microalgae, which are the foundation of oceanic carbon capture, and estimated that in 2020, microplastic pollution may have prevented the ocean from sequestering about 75,000 tonnes of CO2 — worth roughly $5.5 million in carbon credits. Tropical and arid ocean regions are most affected, adding a climate angle to the already serious ecological case for reducing plastic pollution.

2026 Ecosystem Services
Review Tier 2

Microplastics as contaminants in the marine environment: A review

This review synthesized the state of knowledge on microplastics as marine contaminants, covering their sources, pathways, distribution, biological uptake, and potential ecological and toxicological effects.

2011 Marine Pollution Bulletin 5709 citations
Article Tier 2

Implications of plastic pollution on global carbon cycle

This review examines how plastic pollution disrupts the global carbon cycle through the production of fossil-fuel-based plastics, the release of carbon during plastic degradation, and the leaching of chemical additives into the environment. Microplastics and nanoplastics from degrading plastic waste affect carbon cycling in both soil and water ecosystems. The findings highlight that plastic pollution is not just a waste problem but also contributes to climate-related disruptions that ultimately affect human well-being.

2025 Carbon Research 7 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic in the Marine Environment

This review examines the presence, sources, distribution, and ecological effects of microplastics in marine environments, arguing that the pervasive use of plastics in modern society and poor waste management have made ocean microplastic pollution a critical global issue.

2023 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics and their Impact on the Marine Environment

This review examines how plastic debris in the ocean degrades into microplastics and affects marine ecosystems. The authors discuss how surface plastics reduce heat absorption and how degrading plastics release greenhouse gases, potentially contributing to climate change. The review also highlights the role of ocean plastic in altering marine food webs and threatening biodiversity.

2023 2 citations
Article Tier 2

The Contribution of Microplastics to Marine Pollution

This review examines the contribution of microplastics to marine pollution, covering the pathways by which plastic particles enter ocean systems, their distribution across ocean basins, effects on marine life, and the challenges of reducing the flow of plastic into the sea.

2025 International Journal for Research in Applied Science and Engineering Technology
Article Tier 2

Microplastics Pollution

This review summarizes the current state of knowledge about microplastic pollution in marine ecosystems, covering sources, distribution, and ecological impacts. The study emphasizes that plastics are virtually indestructible in the environment and that microplastics are now ubiquitous in ocean food chains.

2020 BENTHAM SCIENCE PUBLISHERS eBooks
Article Tier 2

Microplastic pollution in the marine environment: Sources, impacts, and degradation.

This review summarizes existing research on microplastic pollution in the ocean, covering sources, effects on marine life, and degradation. Microplastics harm marine organisms across the food chain, from plankton to fish, affecting their growth, reproduction, immune systems, and behavior. Since humans consume many of these marine species, the widespread contamination raises concerns about microplastic exposure through seafood.

2025 Journal of Advanced Veterinary and Animal Research 7 citations
Article Tier 2

The detrimental impact of microplastics on the Marine Environment and potential remediation strategies.

This review analyzes the detrimental impacts of microplastics on marine environments, summarizing documented hazards to marine life and ecosystems from historical and recent research, and evaluates several representative remediation strategies for addressing microplastic contamination. The authors found that microplastics interfere broadly with marine organism physiology and food web dynamics, and that current treatment approaches — including filtration, photocatalysis, and biological degradation — each carry limitations requiring further development for large-scale application.

2024 Science and Technology of Engineering Chemistry and Environmental Protection
Article Tier 2

Occurrence, effects and risks of marine microplastics

This review summarizes the state of knowledge on the occurrence, biological effects, and ecological risks of microplastics in the marine environment. It covers plastic sources, distribution patterns, ingestion by marine organisms, and the transfer of chemical pollutants through marine food webs, concluding that microplastic pollution poses serious and growing risks to ocean ecosystems.

2015 Ghent University Academic Bibliography (Ghent University) 13 citations
Article Tier 2

effects of microplastic contamination of marine snow on the deep sea food chain and carbon sequestration by phytoplankton

This study examines the effects of microplastic contamination of marine snow on the deep-sea food chain and on carbon sequestration by phytoplankton, investigating how microplastics alter the biological pump that transports organic carbon from surface waters to the deep ocean. The findings highlight microplastics as a disruptive factor in deep-sea carbon cycling and trophic energy transfer pathways.

2025
Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastic effects on carbon cycling in terrestrial soil ecosystems: Storage, formation, mineralization, and microbial mechanisms

Microplastics in soil contribute to organic carbon storage through degradation and leaching, but also disrupt carbon cycling by altering plant growth, litter decomposition, and microbial activity. The net effect on soil CO2 and CH4 emissions varies depending on how microplastics reshape microbial community structure and enzyme activity.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 8 citations