Source, fate, toxicity, and remediation of micro-plastic in wetlands: A critical review

Abstract

Microplastics (MPs) are recognized as emerging contaminants due to their small size, hazardous nature, and widespread abundance in the environmental compartments. As the largest sink of MPs, oceans are currently the main focus. However, the question about MP particles applies to all environmental niches, including natural wetlands. Unfortunately, natural wetlands have been not explored much in comparison to the ocean and the terrestrial ecosystem for MP occurrence and its toxicity. Meanwhile, these natural wetlands offer important ecological services and have a high biodiversity, both of which could be compromised by the rising levels of MP contamination in such systems. However, due to limited research in natural wetlands possible ecological repercussions are still lacking. Even there are uncertainties about MPs in the wetlands regarding their distribution and fate. Since these wetlands have the potential to trap plastics and could act as a sink for MPs, it becomes essential to investigate the natural wetland for MP contamination and its possible toxicological risks in wetlands. This review summarised the source, potential sink and toxicological consequences of MPs in natural wetlands. The review also illustrated the advancements in the technologies aiming to remove plastic debris from the natural environment.