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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Contamination by plastics and microplastics: (re)knowing the lived reality.
ClearHow natural and anthropogenic factors should drive microplastic behavior and fate: The scenario of Brazilian urban freshwater
This review examines the factors driving microplastic contamination in Brazilian freshwater systems, including the country's massive plastic production and limited recycling infrastructure. Researchers highlight that more than half of post-consumer plastic packaging in Brazil goes unmonitored, and most microplastic research has focused on marine environments while freshwater data remains scarce. The study calls for more systematic monitoring of Brazilian rivers and lakes, especially given the country's continental-scale waterways and diverse ecosystems.
Impactos clínicos, sociais, tóxicos e ambientais causados pela exposição contínua e sistêmica de microplásticos no ecossistema brasileiro
This Brazilian review examines the clinical, social, toxic, and environmental impacts of continuous systemic microplastic exposure in the Brazilian ecosystem, noting that 8.3 billion tons of virgin plastics have been produced globally. The authors discuss how plastic fragmentation into microparticles threatens Brazilian biodiversity, food safety, and human health through multiple exposure pathways.
Microplastics, Contaminants, and Waste Hotspots: Divergences and Faults in Prioritizing Control Efforts
Using Brazil as a case study, this paper classified hotspots and priorities for reducing plastic emissions and mismanaged waste, arguing that microplastics' classification as emerging contaminants requires clearer information tools to guide government intervention and pollution control efforts.
Single-use plastic in Brazil: context and environmental impacts
This book volume presents the Brazilian and global context of single-use plastic production, consumption, and environmental impacts, serving as an educational resource for the broader public. It documents that plastic production is predicted to triple by 2050 without significant policy intervention, driving continued microplastic contamination globally.
Effect of Plastic Ocean Pollution on Marine Life and Human Health in Brazil
This desk-study review examines how plastic ocean pollution affects marine life and human health in Brazil, synthesizing secondary data on contamination pathways and toxicological impacts.
Microplastics as contaminants in the Brazilian environment: an updated review
A comprehensive review of 79 Brazilian microplastic studies published between 2018 and 2022 found microplastics widespread across marine and terrestrial environments, with marine coastal studies dominating the literature and polyethylene and polypropylene fragments being the most common types detected. The review highlights significant gaps in inland and atmospheric monitoring and a lack of standardized methods that hinders cross-study comparisons — critical issues for a country with one of the world's longest coastlines and major river systems.
Single-use plastic in Brazil: policies and laws
This book volume reviews policies and laws addressing single-use plastics in Brazil, examining how different sectors of society have organized to advocate for regulatory measures. Understanding how policy instruments are developed and implemented is important for the global effort to reduce plastic waste and downstream microplastic contamination.
Litter assessment on sandy beaches along the Brazilian coast: a large-scale analysis of macrolitter and microplastics
Researchers conducted a large-scale assessment of macrolitter and microplastic contamination on sandy beaches along the Brazilian coast, characterizing pollution patterns, dominant polymer types, and potential anthropogenic sources across multiple sites.
Rethinking the Environmental Quality of Brazilian Beaches: The Incidence of Microplastics as Indicator for Sea Water and Sand Quality
This paper proposes using microplastic levels in beach sand and seawater as indicators of beach environmental quality, arguing that current assessments in Brazil focus too narrowly on microbial contamination. The authors present evidence that microplastic contamination poses health risks to swimmers and coastal communities that should be incorporated into beach quality standards.
Meso- and microplastic composition, distribution patterns and drivers: A snapshot of plastic pollution on Brazilian beaches
A standardized survey of plastic pollution across 22 sandy beaches spanning over 4600 km of Brazilian coast found widespread contamination in coastal sediments, with polymer type, size, and distribution patterns reflecting diverse sources including fishing activity and urban runoff.
Overcoming Plastic Pollution: Challenges Faced by Brazilian Policies and Perspectives for Stakeholder Engagement and Global Governance Opportunities
This policy paper reviewed the history of plastic production and mismanagement in Brazil, identifying structural barriers to effective plastic pollution control and proposing policy perspectives to overcome dependence on single-use plastic.
Why are single-use plastics a problem?
This educational book chapter is part of a Brazilian series designed to raise public awareness about single-use plastics, targeting waste pickers, students, and civil society through pedagogical activities. The volume aims to develop a more critical public understanding of plastic pollution, which is closely tied to microplastic contamination in food, water, and the environment.
Analysis of Brazilian plastic waste management in the global context and case study of the City of Vitória, Espírito Santo
This review analyzes Brazil's plastic waste management and finds that the country recycles only about 1% of its plastic waste, far behind nations with comparable economic development. Researchers documented extensive microplastic pollution in waterways, atmosphere, and mangrove ecosystems around the city of Vitoria. The study highlights that without significant improvements to waste collection and recycling infrastructure, microplastic contamination will continue to grow in Brazilian environments.
Plastic Interactions with Brazilian Aquatic Organisms: A Systematic Review of Research Trends and Knowledge Gaps
This systematic review summarizes research on how plastic pollution interacts with aquatic organisms across Brazil's rivers, coasts, and oceans. It identifies major knowledge gaps, including limited studies on microplastic effects in freshwater species and a lack of standardized methods. Understanding these interactions matters because contaminated fish and shellfish can carry microplastics into the human food chain.
Efectos de los microplásticos en el medio ambiente: Un macroproblema emergente
This review (written in Portuguese) summarizes the environmental effects of microplastics, noting that 300 million tonnes of plastic are produced annually with millions entering rivers and oceans. It highlights the irreversible ecological damage microplastics can cause to organisms with limited adaptive capacity.
Microplásticos, Seus Impactos No Ambiente E Maneiras Biodegradáveis De Substituição.
This Portuguese-language review examined microplastics as major aquatic and terrestrial pollutants, summarizing their sources, environmental distribution, and impacts on ecosystems, and reviewing biodegradable alternatives as a strategy to reduce future plastic fragment accumulation.
Keberadaan Plastik di Lingkungan, Bahaya terhadap Kesehatan Manusia, dan Upaya Mitigasi: Studi Literatur
This Indonesian-language literature review examined microplastic presence in the environment, summarizing health risks to humans from microplastic exposure through food and water, the environmental fate of plastic particles, and mitigation strategies including the 3Rs and material substitution to reduce plastic waste pollution.
Microplastic Pollution in the Environment
This review examines the ubiquitous presence of microplastics as emerging environmental pollutants across all major environmental compartments, synthesizing data on their sources, fates, and concentrations over time and space to characterize the scale of global contamination.
The revelry of plastic! Quali-quantitative variation of microplastics in freshwater before and after Carnival in south-eastern Brazil
Researchers conducted a quali-quantitative survey of microplastics in freshwater habitats, characterizing variation in abundance, polymer type, and morphology across multiple sites and linking pollution levels to upstream land use and human activity.
Environmental status of (micro)plastics contamination in Portugal
This is the first comprehensive review of plastic and microplastic contamination in Portugal, finding that thousands of tons of mismanaged waste and trillions of microplastic particles enter the environment annually. Northern and urban regions are most contaminated, with documented impacts on marine life and fisheries.
Dampak Pencemaran Mikroplastik di wilayah Pesisir dan Kelautan
This Indonesian overview examines the problems of microplastic contamination in coastal and marine environments, reviewing the sources, distribution, and ecological effects of plastic pollution. The paper highlights the particular vulnerability of Indonesian coastal areas given high plastic waste generation and limited waste management infrastructure.
Emerging contaminants, including microplastics, in surface waters : uses of watersheds and impacts on the environment
This thesis investigated emerging contaminants including microplastics in surface waters across different land use types in Brazil, examining how watershed activities influence contamination levels in rivers and streams.
Microplastics in brazilian marine environments: a study on beaches in São Francisco do Sul - SC
Beach surveys along São Francisco do Sul in southern Brazil confirmed widespread microplastic presence in coastal sediments, with polymer composition reflecting regional plastic waste streams. The study adds to the body of evidence that Brazilian coastlines are significantly contaminated and calls for national monitoring standards to track and manage the problem.
Characterization of microplastics in marine and estuarine samples
This study characterized microplastics from marine and estuarine environments in Brazil, finding primary microplastics (pellets and beads) alongside secondary particles formed from degradation of discarded plastic. The work highlights the diverse sources and types of microplastic pollution in South American coastal waters.