Microplastic contamination refers to the presence and distribution of synthetic polymer particles typically <5 mm in environmental matrices, including marine, freshwater, terrestrial, atmospheric, and biological systems. As a research topic, it encompasses sources (primary and secondary microplastics), transport pathways (e.g., hydrodynamic and atmospheric dispersion), physicochemical properties (size, shape, polymer type, surface chemistry), and interactions with co-contaminants such as persistent organic pollutants and metals. Studies investigate bioavailability, trophic transfer, organismal and cellular responses, and potential human exposure via inhalation and ingestion, as well as methodological challenges in sampling, analytical detection, quantification, and risk assessment frameworks.
Chemicals released from car tires as they wear down are washing into rivers, estuaries and the sea and they could be disrupting life at the base of the marine food web, according to a new study.
Ecology
Aug 4, 2025
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25
Plastic pollution is a "grave, growing and under-recognized danger" to health that is costing the world at least $1.5 trillion a year, experts warned in a report on Monday.
Environment
Aug 4, 2025
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199
Negotiators will take another stab at reaching a global pact on plastic pollution at talks opening Tuesday in Geneva but they face deep divisions over how to tackle the health and ecological hazard.
Environment
Aug 2, 2025
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73
In the 1990s, scientists restoring streams around Seattle, Wash., noticed that returning coho salmon were dying after rainstorms. The effects were immediate: the fish swam in circles, gasping at the surface, then died in ...
Environment
Jul 31, 2025
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20
New measurements of fine microplastic particles suspended in the air in homes and cars suggest that humans may be inhaling far greater amounts of lung-penetrating microplastics than previously thought. Nadiia Yakovenko and ...
Environment
Jul 30, 2025
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212
Rising levels of plastic waste are breaking down in every part of Earth's land, sea and air, leading to the proliferation of micro- and nanoplastic pollution, posing a risk to all lifeforms.
Environment
Jul 29, 2025
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31
With the final round of UN negotiations on a global plastics treaty fast approaching, a group of over 60 leading scientists from around the world has issued an urgent call for governments to agree on ambitious, enforceable ...
Environment
Jul 29, 2025
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24
Most of the plastic bottles and caps that pollute the Pacific coasts of Latin American countries are of local origin, and are mainly produced by the multinational companies The Coca-Cola Company, Aje Group and PepsiCo. The ...
Environment
Jul 24, 2025
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42
Representatives from 175 countries will gather in Geneva, Switzerland, in August for the final round of negotiations on a legally binding UN treaty to end plastic pollution. Non-governmental organizations, academics and industry ...
Environment
Jul 23, 2025
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24
Every few years, the tires on your car wear thin and need to be replaced. But where does that lost tire material go?
Environment
Jul 22, 2025
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56
