Papers

61,005 results
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Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastics in Freshwater Environment in Asia: A Systematic Scientific Review

This systematic review summarizes existing research on microplastic contamination in Asian freshwater environments, including rivers, lakes, and reservoirs. The study found that microplastics are widespread in Asian freshwater systems, with research concentrated in China and Southeast Asia, and identified potential risks to both aquatic life and human health. Since billions of people in Asia rely on freshwater for drinking and food production, this contamination is a significant public health concern.

2022 Water 35 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence of Microplastics in Drinking Water in South East Asia: A Short Review

This review examines the levels and sources of microplastics found in drinking water across Southeast Asia, a region home to many of the world's most plastic-polluted rivers. Researchers found microplastics present in tap water, bottled water, and treated water throughout the region, with potential health concerns including inflammation and cellular damage from long-term ingestion. The study highlights the urgent need for improved water treatment methods and stronger regulatory frameworks to address microplastic contamination in drinking water supplies.

2023 Tropical Environment Biology and Technology 20 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

A Critical Review on the Characterization and Distribution of Microplastic Contaminants in Indian Water Environments: Pathways and Related Hazards

This systematic review examines microplastic contamination in India's freshwater environments, including rivers and lakes. While marine ecosystems have gotten the most attention, freshwater sources — which supply drinking water — are also heavily contaminated. The findings highlight how inadequate waste management and recycling infrastructure allow microplastics to spread through the water systems that communities depend on.

2025 Water Resources 2 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic Pollution in Inland Waters Focusing on Asia

This review synthesized research on microplastic pollution in inland waters across Asia, documenting that rivers, lakes, and reservoirs are heavily contaminated and identifying key knowledge gaps in monitoring and ecological impact assessment.

2017 ˜The œhandbook of environmental chemistry 132 citations
Article Tier 2

Occurrence and identification of microplastics in tap water from China

Researchers analyzed 38 tap water samples from cities across China and found microplastics in all of them, with concentrations averaging around 440 particles per liter. Most particles were smaller than 50 micrometers, and the dominant types were polyethylene and polypropylene fragments. The findings highlight that drinking water treatment plants face a significant challenge in addressing microplastic contamination in the water supply.

2020 Chemosphere 416 citations
Article Tier 2

Prevalence and implications of microplastics in potable water system: An update

This review summarizes current knowledge on microplastic contamination in drinking water systems worldwide, covering sources, detection methods, and potential health implications. Researchers found that microplastics are present in both tap and bottled water, with fibers and fragments being the most common types detected. The study highlights the need for standardized testing methods and regulatory limits to protect public health from microplastic exposure through drinking water.

2023 Chemosphere 47 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in water: occurrence, detection, and impacts – a comprehensive review of multiple studies

This comprehensive review synthesized current knowledge on microplastic occurrence, detection methods, and impacts across marine, freshwater, and remote aquatic ecosystems. Researchers highlighted that microplastic concentrations are particularly high in urban rivers, transported through runoff, atmospheric deposition, and river input. The review identifies critical research gaps including the need for standardized detection methods and more studies on chronic human exposure through contaminated seafood and drinking water.

2026 Water Practice & Technology
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in drinking water: a macro issue

This review examines the growing concern of microplastic contamination in drinking water sources, noting that microplastics are found not only in oceans but also in freshwater and tap water. The study highlights that beyond direct harm, microplastics can act as carriers for other contaminants, making their presence in drinking water a significant issue for human health.

2022 Water Science & Technology Water Supply 72 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Asian freshwater ecosystems: Current knowledge and perspectives

This review of microplastic research in Asian freshwater ecosystems from 2014 to 2021 found that Asia is a global hotspot for freshwater microplastic pollution, driven by rapid urbanization and economic growth, with fibers from textile washing and fragments from plastic debris degradation as dominant types.

2021 The Science of The Total Environment 87 citations
Article Tier 2

Ubiquity of Microplastics in Drinking Water: An Update on Its Assessment and Impact

This review documents the widespread presence of microplastics in drinking water worldwide — including both tap and bottled water — and examines the potential health impacts of ingesting these particles. Current evidence shows microplastics are present in essentially all drinking water supplies at levels that cause concern, though the long-term health effects remain under investigation. The review calls for improved water treatment and reduced plastic use as parallel strategies to address the problem.

2021 Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
Article Tier 2

Presence of microplastics in drinking water from freshwater sources: the investigation in Changsha, China

Researchers measured microplastic abundance at multiple stages of a drinking water supply chain in Changsha, China — from source freshwater through treatment to household taps — finding that water treatment reduced MP concentrations by more than 85% but tap water still contained an average of 344 particles per liter.

2021 Environmental Science and Pollution Research 168 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastic and nanoplastic concentration in tap water in the US

Researchers analyzed microplastic and nanoplastic concentrations in tap water samples across the United States, detecting particles in the majority of samples and characterizing their size distribution, polymer type, and geographic variation.

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

Occurrence of Microplastics in the Asian Freshwater Environments: A Review

This review synthesizes published findings on microplastic occurrence in water and sediment across Asian freshwater environments, covering size distributions, polymer types, morphological characteristics, and contamination sources. It also discusses the capacity of freshwater microplastics to adsorb heavy metals, highlighting knowledge gaps that still limit understanding of this pollution pathway.

2022 Applied Environmental Research 9 citations
Article Tier 2

Global prevalence of microplastics in tap water systems: Abundance, characteristics, drivers and knowledge gaps

A global analysis of tap water from 34 countries found that microplastics were present in 87% of over 1,100 samples tested, with particles smaller than 50 micrometers being the most common. When researchers looked for particles as small as 1 micrometer, concentrations were more than 20 times higher than studies that only counted larger particles. This means that most people worldwide are regularly drinking microplastics in their tap water, and the true extent of exposure has likely been underestimated.

2024 The Science of The Total Environment 12 citations
Review Tier 2

Microplastic Contamination in Drinking Water: A Review

This review summarized current research on microplastic contamination in drinking water, covering detection methods, occurrence data, and health implications. The authors found microplastics widely present in tap and bottled water worldwide and noted that conventional treatment processes remove them incompletely, raising ongoing concerns about chronic low-level human ingestion.

2025 Journal of Health Science and Pharmacy
Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastics in Our Waters: Insights from a Configurative Systematic Review of Water Bodies and Drinking Water Sources

This systematic review mapped microplastic contamination across rivers, lakes, seas, tap water, and bottled water worldwide. The findings show that microplastics are present in virtually every water source we rely on, with rivers being the most studied and polyethylene being the most commonly found plastic type.

2025 Microplastics 14 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastic contamination, an emerging threat to the freshwater environment: a systematic review

Researchers systematically reviewed the spread of microplastics in freshwater ecosystems — rivers, lakes, and streams — documenting their sources, how they move through water, the damage they cause to aquatic organisms, and the methods used to detect them. Their review serves as a baseline reference for future research and calls for improved waste management to protect freshwater environments from ongoing microplastic contamination.

2024 ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS RESEARCH 98 citations
Review Tier 2

Microplastics pollution in water is a threat for human health and the environment (literature review)

This literature review examines the growing problem of microplastic contamination in water bodies and drinking water worldwide. Evidence indicates that microplastics pose concerns for human health both through their physical effects and through the chemicals and microorganisms they can carry, with studies confirming their presence in marine and freshwater environments across multiple countries.

2023 Health risk analysis 6 citations
Systematic Review Tier 1

Microplastic Contamination, an Emerging Threat to the Freshwater Environment and Human Health: A Systematic Review

This systematic review summarizes existing research on microplastic contamination in freshwater environments and its implications for human health. The evidence shows that microplastics are widespread in rivers, lakes, and drinking water sources, and they can absorb toxic chemicals, making freshwater plastic pollution a direct concern for the safety of our water supply.

2023 Preprints.org 1 citations
Article Tier 2

Drinking plastic: a study of microplastic concentrations in drinking water from rural and urban sources in Mali, Africa

Researchers measured microplastic concentrations in drinking water from rural and urban sources in Mali, Africa, finding microplastics in all samples and identifying higher concentrations in urban supplies, with implications for human health in a region with limited water treatment infrastructure.

2024
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Freshwater Ecosystems in India: A Comprehensive Review

This review examines the occurrence, sources, and ecological risks of microplastics across freshwater ecosystems in India, synthesizing current literature on contamination levels in rivers, lakes, and other inland water bodies.

2025 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND ANALYTICAL REVIEWS
Systematic Review Tier 1

A systematic review of microplastic pollution in rivers across Asia

This systematic review found that microplastic pollution is widespread across Asian rivers, with fibers and fragments from synthetic textiles and packaging being the most common types. Since these rivers provide drinking water and sustain fisheries for billions of people, the contamination represents a significant pathway for human microplastic exposure across the most populated continent.

2025
Article Tier 2

Occurrence of Microplastics in Tap and Bottled Water: Current Knowledge

This review summarizes current research on microplastic contamination in both tap and bottled drinking water. Researchers found that microplastics are present in both water sources, with bottled water generally containing higher concentrations than tap water, and smaller particles being more abundant. The study raises public health concerns and emphasizes the need for improved detection methods and drinking water treatment standards.

2022 International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 184 citations
Article Tier 2

Microplastics in Drinking Water: Assessing Occurrence and Potential Risks

This review paper examines how widespread microplastics are in drinking water — from rivers and lakes to groundwater — and what health risks this contamination may pose. The authors call for urgent research into how microplastics move through water treatment systems and ultimately reach taps, emphasizing that current sampling and analytical methods are inconsistent, making it hard to compare studies or set safety thresholds. For people drinking tap or bottled water daily, understanding and regulating this exposure pathway is a pressing public health priority.

2023 Journal for Research in Applied Sciences and Biotechnology 2 citations