Papers

20 results
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Article Tier 2

Global status, risk assessment, and knowledge gaps of microplastics in groundwater: A bibliometric analysis

This review analyzed 215 published studies on microplastics in groundwater and found that this area of research is still in its early stages compared to surface water studies. Evidence indicates that microplastic contamination is present in groundwater worldwide, but sampling methods and reported results vary widely. The authors identified significant knowledge gaps in understanding how microplastics move through underground water systems and what risks they may pose to drinking water sources.

2024 Groundwater for Sustainable Development 5 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence and Sources of Microplastics in groundwater divided by well depth and Hydrogeology in South Korea

Researchers investigated microplastic occurrence in South Korean groundwater stratified by well depth and hydrogeological setting, finding microplastics in wells across all depths and identifying surface connectivity as a key factor controlling contamination levels.

2024
Article Tier 2

Review of Current Issues and Management Strategies of Microplastics in Groundwater Environments

This review synthesizes current knowledge on microplastic contamination in groundwater, identifying it as a substantially understudied environment compared to surface water and marine systems. The authors describe pathways by which microplastics enter aquifers and discuss management strategies for this largely invisible contamination route.

2022 Water 64 citations
Article Tier 2

Research advances of micro/nanoplastics in groundwater: occurrence, environmental impacts and control strategies

This review examines the emerging issue of microplastic and nanoplastic contamination in groundwater systems, covering their sources, distribution patterns, potential environmental risks, and removal strategies. Researchers highlight that the strong heterogeneity and complexity of underground environments make studying microplastic migration particularly challenging. The study identifies significant knowledge gaps in sampling methods and calls for more research into how microplastics move through groundwater aquifers.

2025 Environmental Pollution 5 citations
Article Tier 2

State of knowledge and future research needs on microplastics in groundwater

This study used text-mining analysis of the scientific literature to summarize the state of knowledge on microplastics in groundwater, identifying research gaps around sources, transport through soil, and human exposure through drinking water. The review found that groundwater microplastic research lags behind surface water studies and that uniform detection methods are lacking.

2022 Journal of Water and Health 16 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Groundwater: Pathways, Occurrence, and Monitoring Challenges

This review provides a comprehensive look at how microplastics make their way into groundwater from surface water, seawater, and soil, and examines the challenges researchers face in detecting and monitoring them. The study found that a lack of standardized sampling and analysis methods makes it difficult to compare findings across different studies. Researchers emphasize the importance of understanding local geological conditions and preventing sample contamination to improve the reliability of groundwater microplastic monitoring.

2024 Water 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in groundwater: a global analysis

Researchers conducted a global groundwater sampling study to characterize microplastic contamination in aquifer systems worldwide, investigating transport mechanisms and fate of particles in anoxic subsurface environments where knowledge gaps remain despite extensive research on surface water systems.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Groundwater in the age of plastic

This review examines microplastic contamination of groundwater globally, synthesizing studies on occurrence, transport pathways through soil and aquifer matrices, and the emerging implications for drinking water safety and groundwater ecosystem health.

2024
Article Tier 2

A bibliometric analysis on microplastic pollution in groundwater

Researchers conducted a bibliometric analysis of publications on microplastic contamination in groundwater, identifying 695 relevant studies published between 2011 and 2022. They found that while microplastic research has surged overall, groundwater as a specific focus area remains significantly understudied compared to ocean and surface water environments. The study highlights critical knowledge gaps in understanding how microplastics transport through and contaminate subsurface water sources.

2024 IOP Conference Series Earth and Environmental Science 2 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastic pollution in groundwater: a systematic review

This systematic review reveals that microplastics have been found in groundwater sources worldwide, raising concerns about drinking water safety. Detection methods and reported contamination levels vary widely, highlighting the need for standardized testing to fully understand the scope of the problem.

2024 Environmental Pollutants and Bioavailability 59 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic contamination in groundwater of rural area, eastern part of Korea

Researchers found microplastic contamination penetrating deep bedrock aquifers in rural Korea, with higher concentrations during dry seasons due to reduced dilution, and particle abundance increasing as size decreased across all sampling depths from 3 to 120 meters.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 49 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics Pollution in the Groundwater of Three Land Use Types, Southeastern Hungary

Researchers investigated microplastic pollution in groundwater across three land use types in southeastern Hungary, providing data on the rate and distribution of microplastic contamination in a freshwater resource that has received far less study than surface water bodies.

2025 Sokoto Journal of Geographical Studies
Article Tier 2

Need of groundwater microplastics study: insights from India

This perspective reviews groundwater microplastic research in India, noting that studies only began in 2019 and remain largely confined to Tamil Nadu, and identifying key research gaps including comprehensive monitoring, hotspot mapping, subsurface migration mechanisms, and soil-groundwater interface behavior of primarily polyethylene and polypropylene microplastics.

2025 Current Science
Article Tier 2

Emerging Concerns about Microplastic Pollution on Groundwater in South Korea

This editorial raises concerns about microplastic contamination in groundwater in South Korea, framing modern times as the "Plastic Age" due to the pervasive presence of synthetic polymers in all environmental compartments including underground water sources.

2020 Sustainability 54 citations
Article Tier 2

Effects of groundwater sample volume on identified microplastics in groundwater of an agricultural area in Korea

Scientists tested how much groundwater needs to be sampled to get an accurate picture of microplastic contamination in agricultural areas of South Korea. They found that sampling at least 100 liters of groundwater was necessary to reliably detect microplastics, and smaller samples often missed particles entirely. The study highlights that inconsistent sampling methods may be leading to underestimates of groundwater microplastic pollution.

2023 The Science of The Total Environment 26 citations
Review Tier 2

Microplastics contamination of groundwater: Current evidence and future perspectives. A review

This review examines the current evidence on microplastic contamination of groundwater, which supplies drinking water to over 2 billion people worldwide. Researchers found that microplastics can reach groundwater through atmospheric deposition, surface water interaction, urban infrastructure, and agricultural soils, though detection remains challenging. The study proposes a new "Hydrogeoplastic Model" framework and calls for improved detection methods to better characterize microplastic fate in aquifer systems.

2022 The Science of The Total Environment 225 citations
Article Tier 2

Trends of global concerns on groundwater contamination and future directions

A bibliometric review of nearly 39,000 groundwater contamination studies from 1991–2024 tracks a shift in research focus from classic pollutants toward emerging contaminants including microplastics, PFAS, and pharmaceuticals, while noting most of these remain unregulated. The review is relevant to microplastic risk assessment because it identifies groundwater — a source of drinking water for billions — as a frontier where microplastic research and regulation urgently need to catch up.

2026 Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety
Article Tier 2

The Urgent Need to Investigate Microplastic Contamination in Groundwater: Soil and Groundwater Interactions as Key Drivers

This viewpoint paper argued for urgent investigation of microplastic contamination in groundwater, highlighting soil-groundwater interactions as key drivers of subsurface MP transport and emphasizing the gap in current monitoring efforts.

2023 ACS ES&T Water 20 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in groundwater: a global analysis

Researchers conducted a global groundwater sampling study — collecting approximately 300 litres per site from caves, boreholes, monitoring wells, and surface springs worldwide using a standardised filtration protocol — to characterise microplastic contamination in these poorly studied anoxic systems. The study presented first results aimed at closing a major knowledge gap about microplastic transport and fate in global groundwater resources.

2024 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in soil and groundwater of Korea: Occurrence, characteristics and risk assessment

This review synthesizes recent Korean research on microplastic contamination in soil and groundwater, finding that PP, PE, PET, and PVC are the most common polymers, fragments dominate in shape (indicating secondary breakdown of plastic products), and agricultural practices are major local sources including plastic mulch films and greenhouse covers. Groundwater microplastic levels vary seasonally with monsoon rainfall, while soil levels remain relatively stable year-round. The review concludes that Korea needs a nationwide investigation and tighter regulations on agricultural plastic use to address what is already a low-to-moderate ecological risk in studied regions.

2023 Episodes 11 citations