Page - 280 - in Freshwater Microplastics - Emerging Environmental Contaminants?

Whywaituntilmicroplastic reacheswater toquantify its existence?Thecurrent methodsofstormdraincatchmentandwastecharacterizationmeasuremacroplastic only.Microplastics,suchassyntheticgrass, tooledshavings, roadabrasion,etc.,are sources of microplastic with unknown abundances, which could bemeasured by sampling surface areas on the ground nearby the activities that create them. Methodologies might include square meter sweeping of sidewalks and roadsides to quantify abundances. A recent study of microfiber fallout used containers on rooftops in Paris to capture airborne particles [17]. Thesemicro- and nanoplastic fibers can bemeasured closer to the source. Surveying the surface of foliage near laundromats (Eriksen,unpublisheddata) recentlydiscoveredabundantmicrofibers. Othermethodsmightemployfootbathsoutsidehotelsor shopswithcarpetedfloors tomeasure the transport of fibers due to foot traffic. The production of household microplastics couldbe estimated fromdust particles accumulated in thefilter bags of vacuum cleaners. Quantifying the significance of these point and nonpoint sourcesmight assist efforts tomitigate their contributions. Table 1 Sources,measurements, and strategies for upstreammitigationofmicroplastics Tacklingupstreammicroplastics Category Source Potentialmitigation Production Microplastics in cosmetics Removing themfromproducts. Replacewith benign alternatives Mismanagedpreproductionpellets Regulate pellet handling.Operation clean sweep Commerce Industrial abrasives Improve containment and recovery and require alternatives Laundromat exhaust Improvedfiltration Agriculture –degradedfilm, pots, and pipes Improve recovery, biodegradable plastics Consumer Tire dust Technological advances, road surface Litteringof small plastic items (ciga- rette filters, torn corners of packaging, small filmwrappers, etc.) Enforcement offines for littering, consumer education,EPRondesign Domestic laundry.Wastewater effluent Washwith top-loadmachines. Wastewater containment, single-fiber woven textiles. Textile coatings Waste management Fragmentation byvehicles drivingover unrecoveredwaste Improvedwastemanagement UVandchemically degraded terrestrial plasticwaste Improvedwastemanagement Sewage effluent (synthetic fibers) Laundryfiltration, textile industry innovation Combined sewageoverflow(large items) Infrastructure improvement Mechanical shreddingofroadsidewaste during regular cuttingof vegetation (mostly grass) Better legislation and lawenforce- ment; valorizationofwaste products 280 M.Eriksen et al.