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20 resultsShowing papers similar to Current and potential risks of microplastics in global surface waters
ClearRisks of floating microplastic in the global ocean
Researchers assessed the ecological risk of floating microplastics in the global ocean by comparing measured concentrations with toxicity thresholds for 23 marine species. They found that in 2010, roughly 0.17% of the ocean surface layer posed a threatening risk, with that fraction projected to rise to 1.62% by 2100 under worst-case scenarios. The Mediterranean Sea and Yellow Sea were identified as current hotspots where microplastic concentrations already pose measurable ecological risks.
Integrating species sensitivity distributions and toxicity thresholds: A probabilistic risk assessment of microplastics in Yazhou Bay, South China Sea
Researchers assessed microplastic abundance and ecological risk in Yazhou Bay, South China Sea, finding surface water concentrations of 3,437 n/m³ with a modeled estimate reaching 241,000 n/m³ when accounting for smaller particle sizes. Species sensitivity distribution analysis identified significant ecological risk to marine organisms at detected concentrations.
Risk assessment of microplastics in freshwater sediments guided by strict quality criteria and data alignment methods
Researchers developed a quality-screened risk assessment framework for microplastics in freshwater sediments worldwide, rescaling published exposure data to a standard 1-5000 µm size range and aligning ecotoxicity thresholds to account for polydispersity and bioaccessible fractions. Using species sensitivity distributions, they calculated hazardous concentrations for 5% of species at approximately 4.9 x 10^9 particles/kg dry weight, finding that current environmental concentrations approach but generally fall within the margin of uncertainty of this threshold.
Risk assessment of microplastics in the ocean: Modelling approach and first conclusions
Ocean microplastic concentrations are projected to increase 50-fold by 2100, and while average open-ocean levels may remain below the derived safe threshold of 6,650 particles/m³, heavily polluted coastal and benthic zones are expected to exceed safe concentrations in the second half of this century.
Toward an ecotoxicological risk assessment of microplastics: Comparison of available hazard and exposure data in freshwaters
Researchers compiled available exposure and toxicity data to perform the first probabilistic risk assessment of microplastics specifically in freshwater environments. The study found that while current concentrations in most freshwaters may not yet pose widespread ecological risk, localized hotspots could exceed harmful thresholds, highlighting the need for more standardized freshwater monitoring.
Assessment of potential ecological risk for microplastic particles
Researchers developed a framework for assessing the ecological risk of microplastic particles, incorporating particle characteristics, environmental concentrations, and species sensitivity data. The assessment identified conditions under which current environmental microplastic levels pose significant risk to aquatic organisms.
Assessment of potential ecological risk for microplastic particles
Researchers applied an ecological risk assessment framework to evaluate the hazard posed by microplastic particles across multiple environmental compartments, using species sensitivity distributions and environmental concentration data. The assessment highlighted specific particle types and size ranges that present the greatest ecological risk.
Global distribution characteristics and ecological risk assessment of microplastics in aquatic organisms based on meta-analysis
This meta-analysis assessed the global distribution of microplastics in aquatic organisms across multiple trophic levels, finding that biological characteristics like body size and feeding strategy significantly influence microplastic ingestion rates. The study provides a framework for ecological risk assessment and proposes strategies to reduce microplastic input into water bodies.
Microplastics in freshwater ecosystems: probabilistic environmental risk assessment and current knowledge in occurrence and ecotoxicological studies
Researchers conducted a comprehensive review of microplastic occurrence in freshwater ecosystems and performed the first probabilistic environmental risk assessment for specific polymer types. They established predicted no-effect concentration values for polystyrene and polyethylene and calculated risk quotients suggesting that current microplastic levels in most freshwater environments pose a low ecological risk.
A probabilistic risk framework for microplastics integrating uncertainty across toxicological and environmental variability: Development and application to marine and freshwater ecosystems
Researchers developed a new probabilistic risk assessment framework for microplastics that accounts for uncertainty in how laboratory toxicity data translates to real environmental conditions. Using Monte Carlo simulation and an enhanced species sensitivity distribution model, they found that uncertainty from particle-trait alignments can drive threshold variability by up to two orders of magnitude. The framework highlights that current risk assessments may underestimate hazards and identifies key research needs for improving microplastic environmental safety thresholds.
Assessment of potential ecological risk for microplastics in freshwater ecosystems
Researchers assessed the ecological risk of microplastics across freshwater ecosystems worldwide, including rivers and lakes in China, Vietnam, Europe, and South America. While one risk method showed negligible danger, more comprehensive assessment approaches revealed extreme ecological threats at every location studied, suggesting that microplastic pollution in freshwater may be more serious than previously thought.
[Occurrence Characteristics of Microplastics in Aquatic Environments and Their Environmental Ecological Risk Assessment].
This meta-analysis pools data from studies worldwide to map where microplastics are found in rivers, lakes, and oceans, and assesses their ecological risks. Understanding how widespread microplastics are in water sources matters because contaminated water is one of the main ways people are exposed to these particles.
Global occurrence, drivers, and environmental risks of microplastics in marine environments
Global marine microplastic abundance showed significant spatial heterogeneity driven by offshore distance, population density, and economic development, with small-size particles (<1 mm) dominating. Polyurethane, polyacrylonitrile, and PVC posed the highest environmental risk contributions, and land-based waste and marine operations were the dominant sources aggregating at nearshore and deep-sea bottom environments.
Freshwater wild biota exposure to microplastics: A global perspective
This global review synthesized field evidence on microplastic exposure in freshwater organisms across many taxa and regions, finding that exposure in nature is widespread but that concentrations used in most laboratory toxicity studies are orders of magnitude higher than field measurements.
A threshold model of plastic waste fragmentation: New insights into the distribution of microplastics in the ocean and its evolution over time
Researchers developed a fragmentation model for plastic particles in the ocean that postulates a critical size threshold below which further fragmentation becomes extremely unlikely, producing a predicted abundance peak around 1 mm in agreement with field data. The model incorporates realistic environmental input rates and degradation kinetics to project the evolution of microplastic particle size distributions over time.
Modeling the spatiotemporal distribution, bioaccumulation, and ecological risk assessment of microplastics in aquatic ecosystems: A review
Researchers modeled the spatiotemporal distribution and ecological risk of microplastics across a coastal marine environment, incorporating hydrodynamic data and bioaccumulation factors for multiple species. The model predicted highest microplastic concentrations near urban outflows with risk extending through the food web.
Microplastics in coastal and oceanic surface waters and their role as carriers of pollutants of emerging concern in marine organisms
Researchers analyzed 167 studies on microplastics in ocean surface waters and marine organisms, finding that fragments and fibers are the most common particle types across all regions studied. The review highlights that microplastics act as carriers for other harmful pollutants, increasing the chemical burden on marine life. The uneven global distribution of research means that microplastic contamination in many ocean regions remains poorly understood.
Micro- and nano-plastics pollution in the marine environment: Progresses, drawbacks and future guidelines
This review summarizes the current state of micro- and nanoplastic pollution in the world's oceans, estimating that 50 to 75 trillion plastic particles are present in marine environments. The pollution threatens 17% of marine species and causes billions of dollars in economic losses, while also entering the human food chain through seafood consumption.
Probabilistic environmental risk assessment of microplastics in marine habitats
A probabilistic environmental risk assessment for marine microplastics — using measured concentration data and species sensitivity distributions — found low risk ratios overall but identified hotspot water bodies (harbors, coastal inlets) where MP concentrations approached or exceeded effect thresholds.
Water environmental capacity of estuarine microplastics capped by species sensitivity threshold
Researchers calculated water environmental capacity limits for microplastics in estuaries using species sensitivity distributions, establishing ecologically protective threshold concentrations that could inform regulatory standards for MP levels in these biologically rich transition zones between rivers and seas.