Assessment of microplastic pollution : occurrence and characterisation in Vesijarvi lake and Pikku Vesijarvi pond, Finland

• Published in: Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
• Main Authors: Scopetani, Costanza, Chelazzi, David, Cincinelli, Alessandra, Esterhuizen-Londt, Maranda
• Other Authors: Ecosystems and Environment Research Programme, Environmental Sciences, Helsinki Institute of Sustainability Science (HELSUS), Aquatic Ecotoxicology in an Urban Environment
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Springer 2019
• Subjects: Environmental monitoring; Microplastics; Vesijarvi lake; Freshwater environments; Microplastic quantification; FTIR SPECTROSCOPY; SURFACE WATERS; PLASTIC DEBRIS; IDENTIFICATION; ENVIRONMENT; INGESTION; POLYMERS; SEDIMENTS; DEGRADATION; VALIDATION; 1172 Environmental sciences; Lahti; ice core
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10138/306727

In the last few years, several studies have investigated microplastics (MPs) in marine ecosystems, but data monitoring and assessing the occurrence in freshwater environments are still scarce. The present study aims to investigate the occurrence, distribution, and chemical composition of MP pollution in Vesijärvi lake and Pikku Vesijärvi pond close to the city of Lahti (Finland) in winter. Sediment, snow, and ice core samples were collected near the shore of these two aquatic systems. MPs were analysed and identified by a non-destructive method using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) 2D imaging. The mean concentrations of MPs detected in sediment, snow, and ice samples were 395.5 ± 90.7 MPs/kg, 117.1 ± 18.4 MPs/L, and 7.8 ± 1.2 MPs/L, respectively. FTIR results showed the predominant abundance of microplastics, such as polyamides (up to 53.3%), polyethylene and polypropylene (up to 17.1%), and natural fragments such as cellulose (up to 45.8%) and wool (up 18.8%) in the same size range. The potential release of MPs arising from stormwaters and sport and recreational activities was evidenced. Peer reviewed