Tiny pieces of plastic have been found in Arctic snow, according to alarming new research
Previously, microplastics have been found in our food, cosmetics, drinking water and oceans. But a new study reveals that the tiny plastic particles, which are smaller than 5 millimeters, have now found their way into snow.
The findings point out that the plastic particles, which emerge when man-made materials disintegrate, are being distributed through the air, taking the tiny fragments to the most remote places in the world.
Read more: Scientists have created magnetic coils thinner than a human hair that could break down plastic in the ocea n
Researchers at the Alfred Wegener Institute and the Swiss Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF-WSL analyzed snow samples from Helgoland, Bavaria, Bremen, the Swiss Alps, and the Arctic and found that the total microplastic concentration in the snow was significantly higher than previously assumed.
Snow sample from Arctic sea
Microplastics on ice floes in Greenland are proof that the tiny fragments are being transported to the most remote places in the world.
Alfred Wegener Institute / Kajetan Deja
Although the study, published in " Science Advances", shows that the proportion of microplastics is lower in areas further away from densely populated and industrialized cities, the researchers were also able to detect particles on ice floes in Greenland. The concentration of microplastics was particularly high in Bavaria, where the scientists found 154,000 plastic particles per liter of snow. Snow samples from the Arctic showed 14,400 particles per liter.
Read more: An 18-year-old has found a way to use 'magnetic liquid' invented by NASA to remove harmful microplastics from water
The Swiss researchers also assume that the majority of the plastic detected in snow comes from other parts of Europe. Similar to pollen grains, the microplastic particles may be distributed via the air, which means they can be transported over long distances and would explain the quantities found on ice floes in the middle of the Arctic Ocean.
Ice samples were taken from Bavaria, Bremen, Helgoland, the Swiss Alps and the Arctic.
Alfred Wegener Institute/ Kajetan Deja
The study also raises questions about human exposure to microplastics, which could potentially pose a health risk. "Once we've determined that large quantities of microplastic can also be transported by air, it naturally raises the question as to whether and how much plastic we're inhaling," said marine ecologist Melanie Bergmann, who co-led the research.
Varnish, rubber found in tires and fragments that could have come from textiles or packaging are among the few materials found in the snow samples.
"We really need to know what effects microplastics have on humans. Especially if inhaled with the air that we breathe."https://www.businessinsider.com/tiny-pl ... er=twitter