Talang Rutjaya Prateep Na, Polruang Sucheela, Sirivithayapakorn Sanya
Environmental Modeling Consultant Center, Environmental Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, 10900, Thailand.
Environmental Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Kasetsart University, Thailand.
Heliyon. 2024 Apr 25;10(9):e30021. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e30021. eCollection 2024 May 15.
This research analyzes data on the microplastic (MP) contamination in the environmental systems (atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere) and the levels of MPs in freshwater of cities with different levels of national income. This study investigates the influencing factors of MP generation, i.e., mismanaged plastic waste, untreated wastewater, number of registered motor vehicles, and stormwater runoff. The statistical correlations between the MP contamination in urban freshwater and the four influencing factors of MP generation are determined by linear regression. The results indicate that MPs are most abundant in aquatic systems (i.e., hydrosphere) and pose a serious threat to the human food chain. The regression analysis shows a strong correlation between mismanaged plastic waste and microfragment smaller than 300 μm in particle size in urban freshwater with high goodness-of-fit (R = 0.8091). A strong relationship with high goodness-of-fit also exists between untreated wastewater and microfragment of 1000-5000 μm in particle size (R = 0.9522). The key to mitigate the MP contamination in urban freshwater is to replace improper plastic waste management and wastewater treatment with proper management practices.
本研究分析了环境系统（大气圈、岩石圈、水圈）中的微塑料（MP）污染数据以及不同国民收入水平城市淡水中的微塑料含量。本研究调查了微塑料产生的影响因素，即管理不善的塑料垃圾、未经处理的废水、注册机动车数量和雨水径流。通过线性回归确定城市淡水中微塑料污染与微塑料产生的四个影响因素之间的统计相关性。结果表明，微塑料在水生系统（即水圈）中最为丰富，对人类食物链构成严重威胁。回归分析表明，管理不善的塑料垃圾与城市淡水中粒径小于300μm的微碎片之间存在很强的相关性，拟合优度较高（R = 0.8091）。未经处理的废水与粒径为1000 - 5000μm的微碎片之间也存在拟合优度较高的强关系（R = 0.9522）。减轻城市淡水微塑料污染的关键是用适当的管理措施取代不当的塑料垃圾管理和废水处理。
