Contamination of beach sediments of a subalpine lake with microplastic particles

• Published in: Current biology Vol. 23; no. 19; pp. R867 - R868
• Main Authors: Imhof, Hannes K., Ivleva, Natalia P., Schmid, Johannes, Niessner, Reinhard, Laforsch, Christian
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Inc 07-10-2013
• Subjects: aquatic organisms; biofouling; Ecosystem; Environmental Pollutants - adverse effects; Environmental Pollution - adverse effects; Freshwater; freshwater ecosystems; Geologic Sediments; habitats; Hazardous Waste - adverse effects; introduced species; lakes; Lakes - chemistry; Marine; marine ecosystems; marine environment; plastics; Plastics - adverse effects; risk; sediments; sewage; trophic relationships
• ISSN: 0960-9822; 1879-0445
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2013.09.001

Plastic waste is of increasing concern in marine ecosystems [1–3]. Buoyant plastic particles accumulate in pelagic habitats whereas non-floating debris accumulates on the seafloor and in beach sediments, posing risk to the respective communities [1–4]. Microplastic particles (<5 mm) are either directly introduced via sewage discharge or formed by biofouling and mechanical abrasion, making them more prone to consumption by aquatic organisms [2,3]. As a consequence, they can accumulate in higher trophic levels [3–5]. A variety of harmful effects of plastic and associated chemicals has been shown [2–4]. Moreover, plastic debris can act as vector for alien species and diseases [2,6]. A large portion of the plastic waste is produced onshore and reaches the marine environment, which is considered the main sink of plastic debris. There is, however, a considerable lack of knowledge on the contamination of freshwater ecosystems with plastic debris. We here show that freshwater ecosystems also act, at least temporarily, as a sink for plastic particles.