Abstract
Pollution by microplastics is of increasing concern due to their ubiquitous presence in most biological and environmental media, their potential toxicity and their ability to carry other contaminants. Knowledge on microplastics in freshwaters is still in its infancy. Here we reviewed 150 investigations to identify the common methods and tools for sampling microplastics, waters and sediments in freshwater ecosystems. Manta trawls are the main sampling tool for microplastic separation from surface water, whereas shovel, trowel, spade, scoop and spatula are the most frequently used devices in microplastic studies of sediments. Van Veen grab is common for deep sediment sampling. There is a need to develop optimal methods for reducing identification time and effort and to detect smaller-sized plastic particles.
Similar content being viewed by others
Introduction
Ecosystems and their different organisms have been widely impacted by anthropogenic activities such as the discharge of pollutants (Hamidian et al. 2019; Mirzajani et al. 2016, 2015; Padash Barmchi et al. 2015; Rezaei Kalvani et al. 2019), including emerging contaminants (Jafari Ozumchelouei et al. 2020) such as microplastics. Endurance, flexibility, lightweight, being low cost and being waterproof allows for plastic use in different applications, leading to their accumulation in the environment (Pellini et al. 2018; Razeghi et al. 2020). Plastic materials are used in a wide variety of markets and industries, including packaging, building and construction, electrical, agriculture, consumer and household appliances such as toothpaste and facial scrubbers, etc. (Wu et al. 2018). According to data from Plastics Europe, world production of plastics reached 335 million tons in 2016 (Plastics Europe 2018). It is estimated that by 2050, this may increase to 33 billion tons (Horton et al. 2017). By then, 12,000 million metric tons (Mt) of plastic waste will have been accumulated in landfills and natural environments (Geyer et al. 2017). Recently, a sharp increase is induced in plastic waste production such as masks, gloves, and plastic shopping bags by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic (Gorrasi et al. 2020). Once plastics are discharged into aquatic environments, they can persist for up to 50 years. Complete plastic mineralization may take hundreds or thousands of years (Holland et al. 2016).
Microplastics are generally defined as plastic particles smaller than a specified upper size limit (< 5 mm). However, sometimes smaller size limits have also been proposed. Currently, there is no specific lower size cutoff for this definition (Connors et al. 2017). Since the 1970s when the first reports of micro-sized particles were published, marine plastic pollution has been of concern (Carpenter and Smith 1972; Carpenter et al. 1972; Colton et al. 1974). Plastic debris in the ocean was recognized by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) as an emerging global environmental issue (Kershaw et al. 2011). However, “microplastics” were first described by Thompson and colleagues in 2004. They reported the occurrence and presence of plastics around 50 µm in size on shorelines and in water column (Thompson et al. 2004). Microplastics are commonly defined as plastic particles with sizes below 5 mm (Hidalgo-Ruz et al. 2012).
Depending on the way in which microplastics are produced, they can be classified into two classes as primary or secondary. Primary microplastics are small plastic particles released directly into the environment by domestic and industrial effluents, spills and sewage discharge or indirectly by runoff. Secondary microplastics are formed as a result of fragmentation of larger plastic particles already present in the environment. Fragmentation takes place due to UV radiation (photo-oxidation), mechanical transformation (e.g., via waves abrasion) and biological degradation by microorganisms (de Sá et al. 2018; Thompson et al. 2009).
There are hundreds of commercially available plastic materials. Polypropylene and low- and high-density polyethylene are the three most common used plastic polymers in packaging. Polyvinyl chloride, polyurethanes, polyethylene terephthalate, polystyrene and polyester are also widely used due to their various applications (Plastics Europe 2018).
In terms of shape, microplastics fall into five main groups. Fragments are three-dimensional and hard jagged-edged particles. Pellets have hard rounded shape. Fibers are fibrous or thin uniform plastic strands, and films are thin, two-dimensional plastic pieces. Foam is a mass of tiny bubbles (i.e., styrofoam-type material) (Anderson et al. 2017; Rezania et al. 2018). Using different measuring instruments, different results may be obtained in terms of shape, size and type of microplastics. The major sampling techniques are shown in Fig. 1.
Despite extensive research on microplastics in marine environments, less effort has been made to monitor microplastics in freshwaters. Freshwaters include water in ice sheets, ice caps, glaciers, icebergs, bogs, ponds, lakes, rivers, streams, marshlands, wetlands and groundwater. Freshwaters are generally characterized as having low concentrations (less than 1000 mg L−1) of dissolved salts and other total dissolved solids (American Meteorological Society 2012). Although the ocean floor is considered to be the ultimate fate of marine microplastics, inland water bodies might also be a terminal or transient sink for microplastics (Z. F. Wang et al. 2018b). Freshwater bodies can have comparable plastic concentrations to marine waters.
Microplastics can cause several harmful physical effects on humans and living organisms through such mechanisms as entanglement and ingestion. They can cause blockage of the gastrointestinal tract or inflammatory responses and consequently a range of adverse effects. Some effects include lower energy reserves, reduced reproduction/growth, oxidative damage, metabolism disruption, cellular lesions, starvation and even death (Ding et al. 2018; Ogonowski et al. 2016). Exposure of microplastics to a cohort of human adults (hand-face skin, head hair and saliva) has been reported (Abbasi and Turner 2021).
The trophic transfer of microplastics in the aquatic food web has been demonstrated by researchers (Farrell and Nelson 2013; Setälä et al. 2014). Microplastics’ large surface area to volume ratio provides a high association potential for environmental contaminants. Microplastics have an affinity for certain hazardous hydrophobic organic chemicals, non-essential trace elements and persistent organic pollutants. Some examples include polychlorinated biphenyls, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, additives, plasticizers and heavy metals (Brennecke et al. 2016; Hartmann et al. 2017; Holland et al. 2016; Koelmans et al. 2016; Naqash et al. 2020).
Wastewater treatment plants receive large amounts of microplastics among other pollutants. However, efforts of treatment (Mojoudi et al. 2018, 2019) including biological methods (Alavian et al. 2018; Hamidian et al. 2016; Mansouri et al. 2013; Mirzajani et al. 2017) remove most of these emerging pollutants.
Different microplastics treatment methods include sorption and filtration, biological removal and ingestion, and chemical treatments. Sorption of microplastics on green algae is based on charged microplastics. Membrane technology regarding durability, influent flux, size and concentration of the microplastics in water and wastewater have shown good efficiency. Coagulation and agglomeration processes, using Fe-based and Al-based salts, are also reported. Electrocoagulation technique and photocatalytic degradation using TiO2 and ZnO semiconductors are used as robust and environmentally friendly techniques. Microplastics ingestion by organisms is also discussed as a removal strategy. However, sorption and filtration processes coupled with membrane bioreactors lead to higher microplastics removal compared to other methods (Hamidian et al. 2021; Padervand et al. 2020). Othman and coworkers reviewed microplastics degradation through enzymatic processes (Othman et al. 2021). ZnO nanorod photocatalysts excited by visible light were used to degrade low density polyethylene film in water (Tofa et al. 2019).
Inland waters and marine environments are facing similar issues related to microplastics presence. However, some differences like physical and chemical characteristics of water cannot be ignored. Here we review techniques for sampling microplastics in waters and sediments with focus of the following issues:
-
a.
What is the evolution of the number of scientific studies on microplastics in freshwater and sediment?
-
b.
Which freshwater compartments are more commonly investigated for microplastics?
-
c.
Which sampling matrix, water or sediment, is most frequently studied?
-
d.
What are the most common sampling methods in water and sediment studies?
-
e.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of sampling methods?
Data acquisition
Literature was gathered through online search in the ISI Website of Knowledge, Science Direct and Google Scholar using keywords and phrases including “microplastic” OR AND “freshwater”, OR AND “plastic particle”, OR AND “plastic fragment”, OR AND “pellets” OR AND “river” OR AND “estuary” OR AND “lake”. The retrieved articles were then screened by study area, of which studies in water and sediment of inland water systems were selected including rivers, estuaries, lakes, reservoirs, estuaries, etc. After identifying candidate research, the abstracts of all studies reporting microplastics in freshwater ecosystems were studied. It is worthy noticing that microplastic research solely on microplastics in freshwater species was excluded. However, a combination of water or sediment studies with biota or all three (water, sediment and biota) were included simultaneously. A total of 150 published pieces of research between 2010 and 2020 were retrieved and evaluated. Details of each study were recorded in an EXCEL spreadsheet for subsequent analysis. This information was used to determine the extent and depth of current microplastic research and to identify important data gaps.
Microplastics presence in freshwater environments
Research papers with an emphasis on microplastics in inland water bodies are mostly published in the last ten years. Microplastics have been recorded along shorelines of the Tamar estuary, UK (Browne et al. 2010). In two urban rivers (the Los Angeles River and the San Gabriel River), Southern California, microplastics were found 16 times more abundant than macroplastics and three times heavier than the bigger particles (Moore et al. 2011). Zbyszewski and Corcoran (2011) scrutinized the distribution and degradation of plastic particles along the beaches of Lake Huron, Canada (Zbyszewski and Corcoran 2011). The first ecosystemic review, assessing microplastics in different compartments, including water, sediment and biota, was reported by Faure et al. in Lake Geneva, Switzerland. Plastics were found on every beach and in the surface layer of Lake Geneva. However, no plastics were observed in biota in this study (Faure et al. 2012). Studies detecting microplastics in different freshwater compartments across continents and even in remote areas (Free et al. 2014; Zhang et al. 2016) are summarized in Tables 1–4.
The numbers of microplastic studies in freshwater environments increased rapidly from four in 2013 to 37 studies in 2019 and 27 papers as of September 2020 (Fig. 2).
In the early stages, it was suggested that the chemical types of microplastics in freshwater seem to be less diverse compared to those collected from the marine salty environment. This observation was attributed to the higher density of seawater, which enables more types of plastic materials with different densities to float on the surface of the water (Zhang et al. 2015). However, this is not always the case, because the processes of controlling distribution and exposure to plastics particles are not necessarily restricted to a specific environmental compartment. Polymers with higher density (density > 1.0 g mL−1) were observed in freshwater environments (Moore et al. 2011; Zhou et al. 2020). Negatively buoyant particles (e.g., polyester, rayon, nylon and cellulose acetate) may remain suspended in water (Baldwin et al. 2016). There may be differing degrees of physical and chemical characteristics, such as storms and wave action and saline water in marine systems. But plastics in freshwater systems still experience physical and chemical degradation (Andrady et al. 2011). It was suggested that polymer density alone is not the most significant control on microplastic particle fate within the aquatic environment. Microplastic morphology, incorporation into copolymeric materials during manufacturing and inclusion within aggregates of varying overall densities may play major roles in microplastics distribution (Hendrickson et al. 2018).
The ability to capture plastic particles from water or sediment matrix and separating them from organic and mineral material are challenging. Identifying types of plastics in the samples and on different surfaces is also important (Costa et al. 2021). It is suggested that microplastics in freshwater systems are similar to those in marine environments, and they are exposed to similar threats (Holland et al. 2016). Therefore, microplastic characteristics, detection methods, methods of analysis and impacts on biota are suggested to be similar.
Sampling procedure and tools
Choice of preservation techniques in different stages of microplastic studies largely depend on the research question (Lusher et al. 2017), economic proportionality of the methods and also the study compartment. Microplastics have now been reported in a range of freshwater environments, including surface water, water column, benthic sediments, littoral sediments and aquatic biota. Three main strategies are identified for sampling. They include selective sampling, volume-reduced sampling and bulk sampling. Different sampling strategies may be selected when the type of matrix to be examined for microplastics (water or sediment or biota) has been taken into account. Selective sampling in field consists of direct collection of items from the environment which are recognizable by the naked eye. This method is usually used on the surface of shore sediments and is more practical for large microplastics (1–5 mm). Bulk samples refer to samples where the whole volume of the sample is taken without reducing it during the sampling process. Volume-reduced samples in both sediment and water samples refer to samples where the volume of the bulk sample is usually reduced during sampling. Only a portion of the sample is preserved in this method, and it is mostly used for water samples (Hidalgo-Ruz et al. 2012).
Water compartment
In water samples, microplastic burden in the measuring units is much lower compared to that in sediment samples. Consequently, analysis of water samples requires higher sampling volumes (Huppertsberg and Knepper 2018). Volume-reduced methods are on-site filtration by nets or sieving. They are more suitable for water samples as they give a promising specimen volume without the need to transfer the whole to the laboratory. Therefore, resulting in a relatively small concentrated final sample. Here we discus three main water sampling methods, including trawls, pump samplers and grab samples.
Trawls and nets
Different types of trawls and nets like manta, neuston or plankton nets and bongo net are used (Fig. 3). Trawl is usually deployed off of a boat, submerged and towed on a linear course at a low speed for a set time or distance (Hidalgo-Ruz et al. 2012; Sighicelli et al. 2018). The area of each sampling is calculated by multiplying the towing distance with the width of the trawl. The volume of water through the net uses either a flow meter or calculations based on the distance traveled by boat at a constant speed (Sadri and Thompson 2014). However, because the net's immersion depth changes constantly with waves, wind and boat movement, it is difficult to estimate the exact volume of water being filtered.
Campanale et al. (2020) collected microplastics by three surface plankton nets fixed in the middle of Ofanto River, in order to reduce the spatial and temporal variability (Campanale et al. 2020). In order to ensure that the most representative body of water is being sampled, factors such as time, location and length of trawls in relation to the strength of tides should be carefully considered. Furthermore, the trawling distance using nets varies depending on the abundance of floating microplastics. It should further consider whether the trawl direction with reference to the prevailing wind direction could have an effect on the abundance and size of particles captured within the trawl (Zhang et al. 2018). In these methods, nets are limited by a single mesh size that is sometimes clogged by suspended material (e.g., organic matter or phytoplankton) (Liedermann et al. 2018; Sadri and Thompson 2014).
Types of microplastics are closely related to the mesh size of tools used for specimen collection. For instance, smaller-sized mesh used in some studies could increase plastic particles of certain shapes (e.g., fibers) to a concentration several orders of magnitude higher than those collected using nets with a larger mesh size. On that account, the abundance of microplastics is largely underestimated by researchers who used a trawl for sample collection (Z.F.Wang et al. 2018b). By using manta trawl, a significant fraction of actual small microplastic particles is very likely to be underestimated because they might pass through the net.
Regarding the limitations of obtaining sufficient water volumes while avoiding net clogging, it was strongly recommended to use tandem nets with different mesh sizes. This helps to better characterize smaller microplastics (Anderson et al. 2017). Dris et al. (2018) had a 250-times higher probability of sampling fibers when using an 80-µm mesh compared to a 330-µm mesh (Dris et al. 2018). Double neuston net trawl (500 µm mesh size) was used as sampling tool in assessing microplastics in surface waters of Lake Superior. No difference was detected between the paired net samples, suggesting that single net sampling produces a representative estimate of microplastic particle condition within a body of water (Cox 2018). A comparison study was conducted between a manta net and a neuston net for microplastics in ocean surface water. Results showed that the manta net tended to have slightly higher densities of microplastics than those of the neuston net. However, no statistical difference was observed. Neuston net is relatively stable in rough water although efforts are needed to maintain the net in submerged depth. Manta net tends to jump in rough water (Michida et al. 2019). Sampling with the manta trawl to function properly requires relatively calm conditions (Anderson et al. 2017). Modified BfG basket sampler used for the Austrian Danube River, clearly showed the necessity of a strong and stable equipment carrier. The nets were positioned on the surface, in the middle of the water column, and at the bottom of the river and with different mesh sizes (Liedermann et al. 2018).
Nets alone may fail to deliver the overall pattern of microplastic pollution in an area, because there does not seem to be sufficiently retaining fibers and small microplastics.
Pump samplers and grab samples
Volume reduction pump sampler and grab samples are also used in some of the research papers. Pump sampling consist of pumping water manually or using a motor through an inline filter. Grab sampling method includes using a bucket to collect water and sieve the water in the field (Han et al. 2020; Miller et al. 2017; Y. Mao et al. 2020a). A fixed amount of bottle is also submerged, filling with surface water for laboratory analysis (Barrows et al. 2018; Dubaish and Liebezeit 2013). Water collected using pumps or bulk samplers is taken from different depths with different volumes. Due to the high variability of microplastic spatial distribution, the sampling area covered is limited and using a pump or bulk sampler may not be representative. Therefore, taking multiple replicates is suggested (Zhang et al. 2018). However, pumps can be used to collect large volumes of water, which may be advantageous in areas where the density of microplastics is suspected to be low (Crawford and Quinn 2017). Water volume could be variable from 5 mL to 500 L (Braun et al. 2018). In addition, they do not possess the limitation caused by pacific sampling mesh tool. Based on literature reviews, significantly more microplastic particles are present in smaller size ranges. A combination of volume-reduced net-based sampling and bulk sampling seems to be very helpful in estimating the missing fractions and enables a greater spatial resolution (Fischer et al. 2016).
Comparison between different water sampling methods
In the comparison of manta trawling and pump sampling methods in microplastic sampling from water of Lake Tollense, Germany, different results were observed in the abundance of microplastics, microplastics shape and size. It was suggested that manta trawl is not sufficient in retaining fibers and small microplastics from water samples. Therefore, the pump sampling approach with the filtration of large water volumes is necessary to generate reliable results. However, the pump sampling covers small microplastics. Small plastic particles are greater in number. Volume-reduced sampling covers large microplastics, being less abundant but still important. Fibers detected in the manta samples were unevenly spread across the whole size range. Fibers found in the pump samples showed distinct positively skewed distribution peaking at > 500–600 µm in length. The most abundant polymer composition in manta trawl samples was polyethylene and polyethylene terephthalate for the pump sampling method (Tamminga et al. 2020).
Lahens and colleagues utilized a bucket and 300-µm plankton net. Bulk water sampling was used for anthropogenic fiber analysis and 300-µm-mesh size plankton net exposition for fragment analysis (Lahens et al. 2018). In the study of Su and colleagues, the average abundance of microplastics was found to be higher in plankton net samples rather than bulk surface water samples (Su et al. 2016). In general, water sampling volumes depend on the solid richness and the target microplastic size range. Barrows et al. (2017) compared grab samples to the conventional neuston net approach. Grab samples collected three orders of magnitude more microplastics than the net approach (Barrows et al. 2017).
In comparison between manta trawl and in situ pump filtration methods, it was found that the pump sampling method is more accurate in volume measurement and versatile for point sampling and filter size choice. However, due to the lower sampling volume, it might be more suitable for sampling in areas with a higher level of contamination. On the other hand, the trawling method has the ability to cover and sample a larger area and therefore overcomes some of the problems related to patchiness (Karlsson et al. 2020). A combination of volume-reduced net-based sampling and bulk sampling seems to be very effective in comprehensive monitoring of microplastic in aquatic environment.
Sediment compartment
Because of such characteristics as buoyancy and extreme durability, synthetic polymers are present in rivers, lakes and oceans and accumulate in sediments all over the world. Microplastic durability makes it highly resistant to degradation from decades to millennia in its polymer forms (Mathalon and Hill 2014). Small plastic particles are easily accessible to a wide range of aquatic organisms, accumulating in their cells and tissues and ultimately transferred through the food web. Most plastics are extremely durable and persistent (Sharma and Chatterjee 2017).
Microplastics in water compartment may be diluted due to seasonal variation in water volume and water dynamic behavior. For sediment compartments, with a static environment, dilution barely happens, and sediments can easily act as accumulation environments. Sediments are a site of microplastics accumulation and the habitat of benthic organisms, which are key components of food webs. In microplastic scientific assessment, sediment samples are taken from both the subtidal and benthic part of freshwater bodies. This issue affects the life quality of the organisms in ecosystems, both in benthic and littoral sediment zone. For example, microplastics were recorded in fecal samples and feathers of waterbirds from contaminated wetlands in South Africa. Plastic particles can fill the gizzard and possibly block the pyloric valve leading into the intestine (Reynolds and Ryan 2018). Microplastics were present in the benthic fish species and benthic organisms of the Caspian Sea, and the abundance of plastic particles in animals near the shore was greater than in the central part (Bagheri et al. 2020). High doses of microplastics led to fewer species and fewer juvenile isopods and periwinkles in European flat oysters and their associated benthic communities (Green 2016).
Sampling tools are selected with regard to sampling places. Sampling is performed in various directives with respect to the analysis of nutrients or pollutants, such as metal ions or persistent organic substances (Braun et al. 2018).
Manual grab samplers
Sediment manual grab methods utilize tools such as hand spades and stainless steel spoon for littoral and beach environments (Fig. 3). As sampling of sediments is facilitated compared to that of the water column, monitoring shore sediments appears to be advantageous. Moreover, non-buoyant particles can be analyzed in sediment samples rather than in water surface samples (Klein et al. 2015). Therefore, sampling from different compartments can give a comprehensive outlook of microplastic pollution problem.
Deep sediment samplers
Different kinds of grabs and corers are suggested to be suitable for deeper sediment sampling. Ekman and Van Veen grab samplers are deployed to study benthic sediment (Merga et al. 2020; Neto et al. 2019; Sruthy and Ramasamy 2017). Deep sediment sampler can provide a look at the changing abundance and microplastic debris in lake sediments that span a century to present day. These particle can contribute to the discussion on plastic wastes as stratigraphic markers for the Anthropocene (Turner et al. 2019; Vaughan et al. 2017). For specimen transition, the use of glass bottle is recommended. However, plastic or aluminum foil bags can also be used. In the case of plastic container utilization, blank control should be included to prevent bias in the study results (Zhang et al. 2018). Care must also be taken to homogenize the sample during further processing.
Comparison between different sediment sampling methods
Surface sediment in shore zone could reflect long-term interfacial interaction between waters and terrestrial environment (Yu et al. 2016). Shore sediment sampling consists of multiple transects at a right angle from the water line and the placement of quadrats along the transects. Transects may be visually scanned for bigger microplastics in the field. The surface layer can be removed to a proximate depth and sieved or transferred to the laboratory for separation steps (Ballent et al. 2016; Egessa et al. 2020). Variation in plastic abundance at different natural beach zones (water line, drift line and high-water line) in Lake Garda was investigated. Results showed that the water line contained the lowest level of plastic particles, whereas the highest proportion of plastic debris was observed in the drift line and high-water line (Imhof et al. 2018). Core samples have the advantage of being able to see depth profile and to study potential microplastic trends in considerable time periods. Surface analysis of these microplastics may show higher degradation effects due to longer time period. However, surface particles may be more exposed to degradation factors.
Sediment sampling tools are selected with regard to sampling places and sampling purposes, as they may show different aspects.
Discussion
No standardized methods exist for selecting mesh size, sampling, clean up, enrichment and detection, making the comparison of different studies complicated. Improving methods is needed to save time and effort in identifying microplastics in different compartments. To the best of our knowledge, water compartments are the most investigated matrix, assessed for microplastics in freshwater environments (102/150). Rivers and estuarine systems are the most frequently studied compartments for microplastic detection, both in water and in sediment (85/150). This may be due to the reported importance of rivers and estuaries as a vector for microplastics transfer to seas and oceans. Littoral or shore sediments and bottom sediment are frequently assessed for microplastics in reviewed studies. Many microplastic studies used Manta nets to collect surface water samples (Fig. 4). Van Veen grabs and simple hand tools like trowels and stainless steel spoons were the most frequently used tools for the bottom and littoral sediments, respectively (Fig. 5). They are also the most common sediment sampling tools from benthic and beach zones and seem to be appropriate for microplastic studies. Regarding sampling tool characteristics, both false positive and false negative results in analyses of small microplastics occur. In recent studies, there is a tendency to detect microplastics in both water and sediment at the same time. The simultaneous detection of microplastics in the water and sediment compartment gives a better perspective of the situation in the ecosystem. The lack of uniformity in reporting the numbers of microplastics, mostly due to employing different units, is considerably noticeable in reviewing papers. This makes the comparison of results difficult and challenging. Some studies have reported microplastic numbers or weights per volume of sampled water or per total dry matter for sampled sediments (particles/kg); the latter is highly recommended.
Conclusion
Employing suitable and reliable sampling, treatment and identification methods is crucial to evaluate microplastic pollution. Sampling and experimental techniques should be standardized to more effectively assess microplastics. Although a smaller mesh size is more appropriate, the choice of trawl or sieve mesh size depends greatly on the study purpose. The kind of environment being studied, e.g., a dynamic river with high water velocity or a calm eutrophic lake or wetland, is also of importance. The exact sampling volume, place and depth must be chosen carefully to ensure that samples represent water body characteristics. Sample volumes should be large enough to minimize overestimation induced by scaling up results, especially for water samples. The pump sampling approach with the filtration of large water volumes is necessary to generate reliable results in the spatial association between microplastic pollution in the surface waters and sediments. The trawling method has the ability to cover a larger area during sampling. To cover different microplastic size and shape, it is advantageous to combine both volume reduction and bulk sampling methods for surface water. More research is required to extend the understanding of representative in the study of microplastics as a key factor for the potential development of reliable data.
Change history
31 August 2021
A Correction to this paper has been published: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-021-01303-x
References
Abbasi S, Turner A (2021) Human exposure to microplastics: a study in Iran. J Hazard Mater 403:123799. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2020.123799
Abidli S, Toumi H, Lahbib Y, El Menif NT (2017) The first evaluation of microplastics in sediments from the complex lagoon-channel of Bizerte (Northern Tunisia). Water Air Soil Pollut 228(7):262. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-017-3439-9
Alam FC, Sembiring E, Suendo MBS, V, (2019) Microplastic distribution in surface water and sediment river around slum and industrial area (case study: Ciwalengke River, Majalaya district, Indonesia). Chemosphere 224:637–645. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2019.02.188
Alavian SS, Hamidian AH, Ashrafi S, Eagderi S, Khazaei M (2018) Study on age-related bioaccumulation of some heavy metals in the soft tissue of rock oyster (Saccostrea cucullata) from Laft Port – Qeshm Island. Iran J Fish Sci 16(3): 897–906. http://aquaticcommons.org/id/eprint/23127
American Meteorological Society (2012) Freshwater, Glossary of Meteorology. Available online http://glossary.ametsoc.org/wiki/Freshwater. Accessed 18 Aug 2020
Anderson PJ, Warrack S, Langen V, Challis JK, Hanson ML, Rennie MD (2017) Microplastic contamination in lake Winnipeg, Canada. Environ Pollut 225:223–231. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2017.02.072
Andrady AL (2011) Microplastics in the marine environment. Mar Pollut Bul 62(8):1596–1605. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2011.05.030
Bagheri T, Gholizadeh M, Abarghouei S et al (2020) Microplastics distribution, abundance and composition in sediment, fishes and benthic organisms of the Gorgan Bay. Caspian sea Chemosphere 257:127201. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2020.127201
Baldwin AK, Corsi SR, Mason SA (2016) Plastic debris in 29 Great Lakes tributaries: relations to watershed attributes and hydrology. Environ Sci Technol 50(19):10377–10385. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.6b02917
Ballent A, Corcoran PL, Madden O, Helm PA, Longstaffe FJ (2016) Sources and sinks of microplastics in Canadian Lake Ontario nearshore, tributary and beach sediments. Mar Pollut Bull 110(1):383–395. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.06.037
Barrows AP, Christiansen KS, Bode ET, Hoellein TJ (2018) A watershed-scale, citizen science approach to quantifying microplastic concentration in a mixed land-use river. Water Res 147:382–392. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2018.10.013
Barrows AP, Neumann CA, Berger ML, Shaw SD (2017) Grab vs. neuston tow net: a microplastic sampling performance comparison and possible advances in the field. Anal Methods 9(9):1446–1453
Blair RM, Waldron S, Phoenix VR, Gauchotte-Lindsay C (2019) Microscopy and elemental analysis characterisation of microplastics in sediment of a freshwater urban river in Scotland. UK Environ Sci Pollut Res 26(12):12491–12504. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-04678-1
Blašković A, Guerranti C, Fastelli P, Anselmi S, Renzi M (2018) Plastic levels in sediments closed to Cecina river estuary (Tuscany, Italy). Mar Pollut Bull 135:105–109. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.07.021
Blettler MC, Ulla MA, Rabuffetti AP, Garello N (2017) Plastic pollution in freshwater ecosystems: macro-, meso-, and microplastic debris in a floodplain lake. Environ Monit Assess 189(11):1–13. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-017-6305-8
Bordós G, Urbányi B, Micsinai A et al (2019) Identification of microplastics in fish ponds and natural freshwater environments of the Carpathian basin, Europe. Chemosphere 216:110–116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2018.10.110
Brandsma SH, Nijssen P, Van Velzen MJM., Leslie HA (2013) Microplastics in river suspended particulate matter and sewage treatment plants. Report R14/02, Institute for environmental studies. University Amsterdam, Netherland. Available online https://puc.overheid.nl/rijkswaterstaat/doc/PUC_147662_31/. Accessed 14 Feb 2020
Braun U, Jekel M, Gerdts G, Ivleva N, Reiber J (2018) Microplastics Analytics: Sampling, Preparation and Detection Methods. Discussion Paper within the scope of the research focus. Plastics in the Environment Sources Sinks Solutions. Discussion paper. German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, Germany. Available online https://bmbf-plastik.de/sites/default/files/2018-12/Discussion%20Paper%20Mikroplastics%20Analytics%20Nov%202018.pdf. Accessed 26 November 2020
Brennecke D, Duarte B, Paiva F, Caçador I, Canning-Clode J (2016) Microplastics as vector for heavy metal contamination from the marine environment. Estuarine Coastal Shelf Sci 178:189–195. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2015.12.003
Briggs E, de Moura EAB, Furusawa HA, Cotrim MEB, Oguzie EE, Lugao AB (2019) Microplastics: a novel method for surface wate sampling ad sample extraction in Elechi Creek, Rivers State, Nigeria. In: Li B et al (eds) Characterization of minerals, metals, and materials the minerals, metals and materials 2019 series. Springer, Cham
Browne MA, Galloway TS, Thompson RC (2010) Spatial patterns of plastic debris along estuarine shorelines. Environ Sci Technol 44(9):3404–3409. https://doi.org/10.1021/es903784e
Campanale C, Stock F, Massarelli C et al (2020) Microplastics and their possible sources: the example of Ofanto river in Southeast Italy. Environ Pollut 258:113284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113284
Campbell SH, Williamson PR, Hall BD (2017) Microplastics in the gastrointestinal tracts of fish and the water from an urban prairie creek. Facets 2(1):395–409. https://doi.org/10.1139/facets-2017-0008
Carpenter EJ, Anderson SJ, Harvey GR, Miklas HP, Peck BB (1972) Polystyrene spherules in coastal waters. Science 178(4062):749–750. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.178.4062.749
Carpenter EJ, Smith KL (1972) Plastics on the Sargasso Sea surface. Sci 175(4027):1240–1241. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.175.4027.1240
Castañeda RA, Avlijas S, Simard MA, Ricciardi A (2014) Microplastic pollution in St. Lawrence river sediments. Can J Fish Aquat Science 71(12):1767–1771
Cedro A, Cleary J (2015) Microplastics in Irish freshwaters: a preliminary study. In Lekkas TD (ed) Proceedings of the 14th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology, Rhodes, Greece 3:1666–1669. Available online https://www.researchgate.net/profile/John-Cleary-9/publication/281619904_Microplastics_in_Irish_freshwaters_A_preliminary_study/links/57750b1e08aead7ba06fbfef/Microplastics-in-Irish-freshwaters-A-preliminary-study.pdf. Accessed 13 Jan 2020.
Colton JB, Knapp FD, Burns BR (1974) Plastic particles in surface waters of the northwestern Atlantic. Sci 185(4150):491–497. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1738284
Connors KA, Dyer SD, Belanger SE (2017) Advancing the quality of environmental microplastic research. Environ Toxicol Chem 36(7):1697–1703. https://doi.org/10.1002/etc.3829
Corcoran PL, Belontz SL, Ryan K, Walzak MJ (2019) Factors controlling the distribution of microplastic particles in Benthic sediment of the Thames River. Canada Environ Sci Technol 54(2):818–825. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.9b04896
Corcoran PL, Norris T, Ceccanese T et al (2015) Hidden plastics of Lake Ontario, Canada and their potential preservation in the sediment record. Environ Pollut 204:17–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2015.04.009
Costa CQ, Cruz J, Martins J, Teodósio MAA, Jockusch S, Ramamurthy V, Da Silva JP (2021) Fluorescence sensing of microplastics on surfaces. Environ Chem Lett. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-020-01136-0
Cox K (2018) Distribution, Abundance, and Spatial Variability of Microplastic Pollution in Surface Waters of Lake Superior. Dissertation, University of Waterloo
Crawford C, Quinn B (2017) Microplastic collection techniques. In: Crawford B, Quinn B (eds) Microplastic pollutants. Elsevier Inc, Amsterdam
de Sá LC, Oliveira M, Ribeiro F, Rocha TL, Futter MN (2018) Studies of the effects of microplastics on aquatic organisms: what do we know and where should we focus our efforts in the future? Sci Total Environ 645:1029–1039. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.07.207
Dean BY, Corcoran PL, Helm PA (2018) Factors influencing microplastic abundances in nearshore, tributary and beach sediments along the Ontario shoreline of Lake Erie. J Great Lakes Res 44(5):1002–1009. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2018.07.014
Deocaris CC, Allosada JO, Ardiente LT et al (2019) Occurrence of microplastic fragments in the Pasig River. H2Open J 2(1):92–100. https://doi.org/10.2166/h2oj.2019.001
Di M, Liu X, Wang W, Wang J (2019) Manuscript prepared for submission to environmental toxicology and pharmacology pollution in drinking water source areas: Microplastics in the Danjiangkou Reservoir, China. Environ Toxicol Pharmacol 65:82–89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.etap.2018.12.009
Di M, Wang J (2018) Microplastics in surface waters and sediments of the Three Gorges Reservoir, China. Sci Total Environ 616:1620–1627. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.10.150
Dikareva N, Simon KS (2019) Microplastic pollution in streams spanning an urbanisation gradient. Environ Pollut 250:292–299. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.03.105
Ding J, Zhang S, Razanajatovo RM, Zou H, Zhu W (2018) Accumulation, tissue distribution, and biochemical effects of polystyrene microplastics in the freshwater fish red tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). Environ Pollut 238:1–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.03.001
Ding L et al (2019) Microplastics in surface waters and sediments of the Wei River, in the northwest of China. Sci Total Environ 667:427–434. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.02.332
Dong M, Luo Z, Jiang Q, Xing X, Zhang Q, Sun Y (2020) The rapid increases in microplastics in urban lake sediments. Sci Rep 10(1):1–10. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-020-57933-8
Dris R, Gasperi J, Rocher V, Saad M, Renault N, Tassin B (2015) Microplastic contamination in an urban area: a case study in Greater Paris. Environ Chem 12(5):592–599. https://doi.org/10.1071/EN14167
Dris R, Gasperi J, Rocher V, Tassin B (2018) Synthetic and non-synthetic anthropogenic fibers in a river under the impact of Paris Megacity: Sampling methodological aspects and flux estimations. Sci Total Environ 618:157–164. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.11.009
Dubaish F, Liebezeit G (2013) Suspended microplastics and black carbon particles in the Jade system, southern North Sea. Water Air Soil Pollut 224(2):1352. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-012-1352-9
Egessa R, Nankabirwa A, Basooma R, Nabwire R (2020) Occurrence, distribution and size relationships of plastic debris along shores and sediment of northern Lake Victoria. Environ Pollut 257:113442. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113442
Enders K, Käppler A, Biniasch O et al (2019) Tracing microplastics in aquatic environments based on sediment analogies. Sci Rep 9(1):1–15. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-50508-2
Eo S, Hong SH, Song YK, Han GM, Shim WJ (2019) Spatiotemporal distribution and annual load of microplastics in the Nakdong River, South Korea. Water Res 160:228–237. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2019.05.053
Eriksen M, Mason S, Wilson S, Box C, Zellers A, Edwards W, Amato S (2013) Microplastic pollution in the surface waters of the Laurentian Great Lakes. Mar Pollut Bull 77(1–2):177–182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2013.10.007
Estahbanati S, Fahrenfeld NL (2016) Influence of wastewater treatment plant discharges on microplastic concentrations in surface water. Chemosphere 162:277–284. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2016.07.083
Fan Y, Zheng K, Zhu Z, Chen G, Peng X (2019) Distribution, sedimentary record, and persistence of microplastics in the Pearl River catchment, China. Environ Pollut 251:862–870. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.05.056
Farrell P, Nelson K (2013) Trophic level transfer of microplastic: Mytilus edulis (L.) to Carcinus maenas (L.). Environ Pollut 177:1–3. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2013.01.046
Faure F, Corbaz M, Baecher H, de Alencastro L (2012) Pollution due to plastics and microplastics in Lake Geneva and in the Mediterranean Sea. Arch des Sci 65:157–164
Faure F, Demars C, Wieser O, Kunz M, De Alencastro LF (2015) Plastic pollution in Swiss surface waters: nature and concentrations, interaction with pollutants. Environ Chem 12(5):582–591. https://doi.org/10.1071/EN14218
Firdaus M, Trihadiningrum Y, Lestari P (2020) Microplastic pollution in the sediment of Jagir Estuary, Surabaya City. Indonesia Mar Pollut Bull 150:110790. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.110790
Fischer EK, Paglialonga L, Czech E, Tamminga M (2016) Microplastic pollution in lakes and lake shoreline sediments–a case study on Lake Bolsena and Lake Chiusi (central Italy). Environ Pollut 213:648–657. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2016.03.012
Free CM, Jensen OP, Mason SA, Eriksen M, Williamson NJ, Boldgiv B (2014) High-levels of microplastic pollution in a large, remote, mountain lake. Mar Pollut Bull 85(1):156–163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2014.06.001
Gallagher A, Rees A, Rowe R, Stevens J, Wright P (2016) Microplastics in the Solent estuarine complex, UK: an initial assessment. Mar Pollut Bull 102(2):243–249. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.04.002
Geyer R, Jambeck JR, Law KL (2017) Production, use, and fate of all plastics ever made. Sci Adv 3(7):e1700782. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.1700782
Gorrasi G, Sorrentino A, Lichtfouse E (2020) Back to plastic pollution in COVID times. Environ Chem Lett 19(1):1–4. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-020-01129-z
Gray AD, Wertz H, Leads RR, Weinstein JE (2018) Microplastic in two South Carolina Estuaries: occurrence, distribution, and composition. Mar Pollut Bull 128:223–233. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.01.030
Grbić J, Helm P, Athey S, Rochman CM (2020) Microplastics entering northwestern Lake Ontario are diverse and linked to urban sources. Water Res 174:115623. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2020.115623
Green DS (2016) Effects of microplastics on European flat oysters, Ostrea edulis and their associated benthic communities. Environ Pollut 216:95–103. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2016.05.043
Hamidian AH, Jafari Ozumchelouei E, Feizi F, Wu C, Zhang Y, Yang M (2021) A review on the characteristics of microplastics in wastewater treatment plants: a source for toxic chemicals. J Clean Prod 295:126480. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.126480
Hamidian AH, Razeghi N, Zhang Y, Yang M (2019) Spatial distribution of arsenic in groundwater of Iran, a review. J Geochem Explor 201:88–98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gexplo.2019.03.014
Hamidian AH, Zareh Reshqueih M, Poorbagher H, Ashrafi VL, S, (2016) Heavy metal bioaccumulation in sediment, common reed, algae and blood worm from the Shoor River. Iran J Toxicol Environ 32(3):398–409. https://doi.org/10.1177/0748233713500835
Han M, Niu X, Tang M, Zhang BT, Wang G, Yue W, Zhu J (2020) Distribution of microplastics in surface water of the lower Yellow River near estuary. Sci Total Environ 707:135601. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135601
Hartmann NB, Rist S, Bodin J, Jensen LH, Schmidt SN, Mayer P, Baun A (2017) Microplastics as vectors for environmental contaminants: exploring sorption, desorption, and transfer to biota. Integr Environ Assess Manage 13(3):488–493. https://doi.org/10.1002/ieam.1904
He B, Goonetilleke A, Ayoko GA, Rintoul L (2020) Abundance, distribution patterns, and identification of microplastics in Brisbane river sediments. Australia Sci Total Environ 700:134467. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.134467
Hendrickson E, Minor EC, Schreiner K (2018) Microplastic abundance and composition in western Lake superior as determined via microscopy, Pyr-GC/MS, and FTIR. Environ Sci Technol 52(4):1787–1796. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.7b05829
Hidalgo-Ruz V, Gutow L, Thompson RC, Thiel M (2012) Microplastics in the marine environment: a review of the methods used for identification and quantification. Environ Sci Technol 46(6):3060–3075. https://doi.org/10.1021/es2031505
Hitchcock JN, Mitrovic SM (2019) Microplastic pollution in estuaries across a gradient of human impact. Environ Pollut 247:457–466. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.01.069
Holland ER, Mallory ML, Shutler D (2016) Plastics and other anthropogenic debris in freshwater birds from Canada. Sci Total Environ 571:251–258. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.07.158
Horton AA, Walton A, Spurgeon DJ, Lahive E, Svendsen C (2017) Microplastics in freshwater and terrestrial environments: Evaluating the current understanding to identify the knowledge gaps and future research priorities. Sci Total Environ 586:127–141. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.01.190
Hu L, Chernick M, Hinton DE, Shi H (2018) Microplastics in small waterbodies and tadpoles from Yangtze River Delta. China Environ Sci Technol 52(15):8885–8893. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.8b02279
Huang Y, Tian M, Jin F, Chen M, Liu Z, Mu HS (2020) Coupled effects of urbanization level and dam on microplastics in surface waters in a coastal watershed of Southeast China. Mar Pollut Bul 154:111089. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111089
Huppertsberg S, Knepper TP (2018) Instrumental analysis of microplastics—benefits and challenges. Anal Bioanal Chem 410(25):6343–6352. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-018-1210-8
Hurley R, Woodward J, Rothwell JJ (2018) Microplastic contamination of river beds significantly reduced by catchment-wide flooding. Nat Geosci 11(4):251–257. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-018-0080-1
Imhof HK, Ivleva NP, Schmid J, Niessner R, Laforsch C (2013) Contamination of beach sediments of a subalpine lake with microplastic particles. Curr Biol 23(19):R867–R868. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2013.09.001
Imhof HK, Laforsch C, Wiesheu AC et al (2016) Pigments and plastic in limnetic ecosystems: a qualitative and quantitative study on microparticles of different size classes. Water Res 98:64–74. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2016.03.015
Imhof HK, Wiesheu AC, Anger PM, Niessner R, Ivleva NP, Laforsch C (2018) Variation in plastic abundance at different lake beach zones-a case study. Sci Total Environ 613:30–537. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.08.300
Irfan M, Qadir A, Mumtaz M, Ahmad SR (2020) An unintended challenge of microplastic pollution in the urban surface water system of Lahore. Pakistan Environ Sci Pollut Res 27(14):16718–16730. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-08114-7
Jafari Ozumchelouei E, Hamidian AH, Zhang Y, Yang M (2020) Physicochemical properties of antibiotics: a review with an emphasis on detection in the aquatic environment. Water Environ Res 92:177–188. https://doi.org/10.1002/wer.1237
Wang JD, Peng J, Tan Z, Gao Y, Zhan Z, Chen Q, Cai L (2017a) Microplastics in the surface sediments from the Beijiang River littoral zone: composition, abundance, surface textures and interaction with heavy metals. Chemosphere 171:248–258. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2016.12.074
Jiang C, Yin L, Li Z, Wen X, Luo X, Hu S, Liu Y (2019) Microplastic pollution in the rivers of the Tibet Plateau. Environ Pollut 249:91–98. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.03.022
Jiang C, Yin L, Wen X, Du C, Wu L, Long Y, Pan H (2018) Microplastics in sediment and surface water of west dongting lake and south dongting lake: abundance, source and composition. Int J Environ Res Public Health 15(10):2164. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15102164
Kapp KJ, Yeatman E (2018) Microplastic hotspots in the Snake and Lower Columbia rivers: a journey from the greater yellowstone ecosystem to the Pacific ocean. Environ Pollut 241:1082–1090. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.06.033
Karlsson TM, Kärrman A, Rotander A, Hassellöv M (2020) Comparison between manta trawl and in situ pump filtration methods, and guidance for visual identification of microplastics in surface waters. Environ Sci Pollut Res 27(5):5559–5571. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-07274-5
Kataoka T, Nihei Y, Kudou K, Hinata H (2019) Assessment of the sources and inflow processes of microplastics in the river environments of Japan. Environ Pollut 244:958–965. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.10.111
Kershaw P, Katsuhiko S, Lee S, Samseth J, Woodring D (2011) Plastic debris in the ocean. In: UNEP Year Book 2011: Emerging Issues in our Global Environment, Nairobi, Kenya, pp 21
Klein S, Worch E, Knepper TP (2015) Occurrence and spatial distribution of microplastics in river shore sediments of the Rhine-Main area in Germany. Environ Sci Technol 49(10):6070–6076. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b00492
Koelmans AA, Bakir A, Burton GA, Janssen CR (2016) Microplastic as a vector for chemicals in the aquatic environment: critical review and model-supported reinterpretation of empirical studies. Environ Sci Technol 50(7):3315–3326. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.5b06069
Lahens L, Strady E, Kieu-Le TC, Drisn R, Boukerma K, Rinnert E, Tassin B (2018) Macroplastic and microplastic contamination assessment of a tropical river (Saigon River, Vietnam) transversed by a developing megacity. Environ Pollut 236:661–671. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.02.005
Lasee S, Mauricio J, Thompson WA et al (2017) Microplastics in a freshwater environment receiving treated wastewater effluent. Integr Environ Assess Manage 13(3):528–532. https://doi.org/10.1002/ieam.1915
Lechner A, Keckeis H, Lumesberger-Loisl F et al (2014) The Danube so colourful: a potpourri of plastic litter outnumbers fish larvae in Europe’s second largest river. Environ Pollut 188:177–181. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2014.02.006
Leslie HA, Brandsma SH, Van Velzen MJM, Vethaak AD (2017) Microplastics en route: field measurements in the Dutch river delta and Amsterdam canals, wastewater treatment plants, North Sea sediments and biota. Environ Int 101:133–142. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2017.01.018
Li L, Geng S, Wu C, Song K, Sun F, Visvanathan C, Wang Q (2019) Microplastics contamination in different trophic state lakes along the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze River Basin. Environ Pollut 254:112951. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.07.119
Liedermann M, Gmeiner P, Pessenlehner S, Haimann M, Hohenblum P, Habersack H (2018) A methodology for measuring microplastic transport in large or medium rivers. Water 10(4):414. https://doi.org/10.3390/w10040414
Lin L, Zuo LZ, Peng JP, Cai LQ et al (2018) Occurrence and distribution of microplastics in an urban river: a case study in the Pearl River along Guangzhou City, China. Sci Total Environ 644:375–381. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.06.327
Liu F, Olesen KB, Borregaard AR, Vollertsen J (2019) Microplastics in urban and highway stormwater retention ponds. Sci Total Environ 671:992–1000. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.03.416
Luo W, Su L, Craig NJ, Du F, Wu C, Shi H (2019) Comparison of microplastic pollution in different water bodies from urban creeks to coastal waters. Environ Pollut 246:174–182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.11.081
Lusher A, Buenaventura NT, Eidsvoll D, Thrane JE, Økelsrud A, Jartun M (2018) Freshwater microplastics in Norway: A first look at sediment, biota and historical plankton samples from Lake Mjøsa and Lake Femunden. Norwegian Insititute for Water Research. Available online http://hdl.handle.net/11250/2588713. Accessed 20 Apr 2020
Lusher AL, Welden NA, Sobral P, Cole M (2017) Sampling, isolating and identifying microplastics ingested by fish and invertebrates. Anal Methods 9(9):1346–1360. https://doi.org/10.1039/C6AY02415G
Mani T, Blarer P, Storck FR, Pittroff M, Wernicke T, Burkhardt-Holm P (2019a) Repeated detection of polystyrene microbeads in the lower Rhine River. Environ Pollut 245:634–641. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.11.036
Mani T, Burkhardt-Holm P (2020) Seasonal microplastics variation in nival and pluvial stretches of the Rhine River-From the Swiss catchment towards the North Sea. Sci Total Environ 707:135579. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135579
Mani T, Hauk A, Walter U, Burkhardt-Holm P (2015) Microplastics profile along the Rhine River. Sci Rep 5(1):1–7. https://doi.org/10.1038/srep17988
Mani T, Primpke S, Lorenz C, Gerdts G, Burkhardt-Holm P (2019b) Microplastic pollution in benthic midstream sediments of the Rhine River. Environ Sci Technol 53(10):6053–6062. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.9b01363
Mansouri B, Pourkhabbaz A, Ebrahimpour M, Hamidian BHAH (2013) Bioaccumulation and elimination rate of cobalt in Capoeta fusca under controlled conditions. Chem Speciat Bioavailab 25(1):52–56. https://doi.org/10.3184/095422913X13581898658634
Mao Y, Li H, Gu W, Yang G, Liu Y, He Q (2020a) Distribution and characteristics of microplastics in the Yulin River, China: Role of environmental and spatial factors. Environ Pollut 265:115033. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2020.115033
Mao R, Hu Y, Zhang S, Wu R, Guo X (2020b) Microplastics in the surface water of Wuliangsuhai Lake, northern China. Sci Total Environ. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.137820
Martínez Silva P, Nanny MA (2020) Impact of microplastic fibers from the degradation of nonwoven synthetic textiles to the Magdalena river water column and river sediments by the city of Neiva, Huila (Colombia). Water 12(4):1210. https://doi.org/10.3390/w12041210
Mason SA, Kammin L, Eriksen M, Aleid G, Wilson S, Riley BCA (2016) Pelagic plastic pollution within the surface waters of Lake Michigan, USA. J Great Lakes Res 42(4):753–759. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2016.05.009
Mathalon A, Hill P (2014) Microplastic fibers in the intertidal ecosystem surrounding Halifax Harbor. Nova Scotia Mar Pollut Bull 81(1):69–79. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2014.02.018
McCormick A, Hoellein TJ, Mason SA, Schluep J, Kelly JJ (2014) Microplastic is an abundant and distinct microbial habitat in an urban river. Environ Sci Technol 48(20):11863–11871. https://doi.org/10.1021/es503610r
McCormick AR, Hoellein TJ, London MG, Hittie J, Scott JW, Kelly JJ (2016) Microplastic in surface waters of urban rivers: concentration, sources, and associated bacterial assemblages. Ecosphere 7(11):e01556. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.1556
McDevitt C, Perez L, Kapp K (2016) The presence of microplastic in freshwater systems: Snake river and Palisades Reservoir. Department of Health and Science, Central Wyoming University. Available https://mountainscholar.org/handle/20.500.11919/2598/. Accessed 3 October 2019
McNeish RE, Kim LH, Barrett HA, Mason SA, Kelly JJ, Hoellein TJ (2018) Microplastic in riverine fish is connected to species traits. Sci Rep 8(1):1–12. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-018-29980-9
Merga LB, Redondo-Hasselerharm PE, Van den Brink PJ, Koelmans AA (2020) Distribution of microplastic and small macroplastic particles across four fish species and sediment in an African lake. Sci Total Environ 741:140527. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140527
Michida Y, Chavanich S, Chiba S, Cordova MR, Cozsar Cabanas A, Glagani F Kozlovskii N (2019) Guidelines for Harmonizing Ocean Surface Microplastic Monitoring Methods. Version 1.1. Ministry of the Environment, JAPAN. Available online https://repository.oceanbestpractices.net/bitstream/handle/11329/1361/Guildlines_ver.1.1_v28_200618.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y. Accessed Feb 2021
Miller RZ, Watts AJ, Winslow BO, Galloway TS, Barrows AP (2017) Mountains to the sea: river study of plastic and non-plastic microfiber pollution in the northeast USA. Mar Pollut Bull 124(1):245–251. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2017.07.028
Mintenig SM, Kooi M, Erich MW, Primpke S, Redondo-Hasselerharm PE, Dekker SC, van Wezel AP (2020) A systems approach to understand microplastic occurrence and variability in Dutch riverine surface waters. Water Res 176:115723. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2020.115723
Mirzajani A, Hamidian AH, Karami M (2016) Distribution and abundance of fish in the southwest of Caspian Sea coastal waters. Russ J Mar Bio 42(2):178–189. https://doi.org/10.1134/S1063074016020073
Mirzajani A, Hamidian AH, Karami M (2017) Metal bioaccumulation in representative organisms from different trophic levels of the Caspian Sea. Iran J Fish Sci 15(3):1027–1043. http://aquaticcommons.org/id/eprint/22930
Mirzajani A, Hamidian AH, Bagheri S, Karami M (2015) Possible effect of Balanus improvisus on Cerastoderma glaucum distribution in the south-western Caspian Sea. J Mar Biol Assoc U K 96(5):1031–1040. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0025315415000788
Mojoudi F, Hamidian AH, Goodarzian N, Eagderi S (2018) Effective removal of heavy metals from aqueous solution by porous activated carbon/thiol functionalized graphene oxide composite. Desalin Water Treat 124:106–116. https://doi.org/10.5004/dwt.2018.22695
Mojoudi F, Hamidian AH, Zhang Y, Yang M (2019) Synthesis and evaluation of Activated Carbon/Nanoclay/ Thiolated Graphene Oxide Nanocomposite for Lead (II) Removal from Aqueous Solution. Water Sci Technol 79(3):466–479. https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.2019.071
Moore CJ, Lattin GL, Zellers AF (2011) Quantity and type of plastic debris flowing from two urban rivers to coastal waters and beaches of Southern California. J Coas Zone Manag 11(1):65–73. https://www.redalyc.org/pdf/3883/388340132008.pdf
Naidoo T, Glassom D, Smit AJ (2015) Plastic pollution in five urban estuaries of KwaZulu-Natal. South Africa Mar Pollut Bull 101(1):473–480. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2015.09.044
Nan B, Su L, Kellar C, Craig NJ, Keough MJ, Pettigrove V (2020) Identification of microplastics in surface water and Australian freshwater shrimp Paratya australiensis in Victoria. Australia Environ Pollut 259:113865. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113865
Naqash N, Prakash S, Kapoor D, Singh R (2020) Interaction of freshwater microplastics with biota and heavy metals: a review. Environ Chem Lett 18(6):1813–1824. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-020-01044-3
Neto JAB, Gaylarde C, Beech I, Bastos AC, da Silva QV, de Carvalho DG (2019) Microplastics and attached microorganisms in sediments of the Vitória bay estuarine system in SE Brazil. Ocean Coast Manage 169:247–253. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2018.12.030
Noik VJ, Tuah PM (2015) A first survey on the abundance of plastics fragments and particles on two sandy beaches in Kuching, Sarawak. Malaysia Conf Ser Mater Sci Eng 78(1):012035. https://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899X/78/1/012035
Ogonowski M, Schür C, Gorokhova JÅ (2016) The effects of natural and anthropogenic microparticles on individual fitness in Daphnia magna. PLoS ONE 11(5):e0155063. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0155063
Olesen KB, Stephansen DA, van Alst N, Vollertsen J (2019) Microplastics in a stormwater pond. Water 11(7):1466. https://doi.org/10.3390/w11071466
Othman AR, Hasan HA, Muhamad MH et al (2021) Microbial degradation of microplastics by enzymatic processes: a review. Environ Chem Lett. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-021-01197-9
Padash Barmchi Z, Hamidian AH, Khorasani N, Kazemzad M, McCabe A, Halog A (2015) Environmental life cycle assessments of emerging anode materials for Li-Ion batteries-metal oxide NPs. Environ Prog Sustain Energy 34(6):1740–1747. https://doi.org/10.1002/ep.12148
Padervand M, Lichtfouse E, Robert D, Wang C (2020) Removal of microplastics from the environment. A Rev Environ Chem Lett 18(3):807–828. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-020-00983-1
Pariatamby A, Hamid FS, Bhatti MS, Anuar N, Anuar N (2020) Status of microplastic pollution in aquatic ecosystem with a case study on Cherating River, Malaysia. J Eng Technol Sci. https://doi.org/10.5614/j.eng.technol.sci.2020.52.2.7
Pellini G, Gomiero A, Fortibuoni T, Ferrà C, Grati F, Tassetti AN, Scarcella G (2018) Characterization of microplastic litter in the gastrointestinal tract of Solea solea from the Adriatic Sea. Environ Pollut 234:943–952. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2017.12.038
Peng G, Xu P, Zhu B, Bai M, Li D (2018) Microplastics in freshwater river sediments in Shanghai, China: a case study of risk assessment in mega-cities. Environ Pollut 234:448–456. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2017.11.034
Peng G, Zhu B, Yang D, Su L, Shi H, Li D (2017) Microplastics in sediments of the Changjiang Estuary, China. Environ Pollut 225:283–290. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2016.12.064
Plastics Europe (2018). Plastics-The facts 2018. An analysis of European plastics production, demand and waste data. Available online https://www.plasticseurope.org/application/files/6315/4510/9658/Plastics_the_facts_2018_AF_web.pdf. Accessed 18 Aug 2020
Rao Z, Niu S, Zhan N, Wang X, Song X (2020) Microplastics in sediments of River Yongfeng from Maanshan city, Anhui Province. China Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 104(2):166–172. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-019-02771-2
Razeghi N, Hamidian AH, Wu C, Zhang Y, Yang M (2020) Scientific studies on microplastics pollution in Iran: an in-depth review of the published articles. Mar Pollut Bull 162:111901. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111901
Reynolds C, Ryan PG (2018) Micro-plastic ingestion by waterbirds from contaminated wetlands in South Africa. Mar Pollut Bul 126:330–333. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2017.11.021
Rezaei Kalvani S, Sharaai AH, Abd Manaf L, Hamidian AH (2019) Assessing ground and surface water scarcity indices using ground and surface water footprints in the Tehran province of Iran. Appl Ecol Env Res 17(2):4985–4997. https://doi.org/10.15666/aeer/1702_49854997
Rezania S, Park J, Din MFM, Taib SM, Talaiekhozani A, Yadav KK, Kamyab H (2018) Microplastics pollution in different aquatic environments and biota: a review of recent studies. Mar Pollut Bull 133:191–208.
Rodrigues MO, Abrantes N, Gonçalves FJM, Nogueira H, Marques JC, Gonçalves AMM (2018) Spatial and temporal distribution of microplastics in water and sediments of a freshwater system (Antuã River, Portugal). Sci Total Environ 633:1549–1559. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.03.233
Rodrigues SM, Almeida CMR, Silva D, Cunha J, Antunes C, Freitas V, Ramos S (2019) Microplastic contamination in an urban estuary: abundance and distribution of microplastics and fish larvae in the Douro estuary. Sci Total Environ 659:1071–1081. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.12.273
Sadri SS, Thompson RC (2014) On the quantity and composition of floating plastic debris entering and leaving the Tamar Estuary. Southwest England Mar Pollut Bull 81(1):55–60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2014.02.020
Sarijan S, Azman S, Said MIM, Andu Y, Zon NF (2018) Microplastics in sediment from Skudai and Tebrau river, Malaysia: a preliminary study. MATEC Web of Conf 250:06012. https://doi.org/10.1051/matecconf/201825006012
Setälä O, Fleming-Lehtinen V, Lehtiniemi M (2014) Ingestion and transfer of microplastics in the planktonic food web. Environ Pollut 185:77–83. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2013.10.013
Sharma S, Chatterjee S (2017) Microplastic pollution, a threat to marine ecosystem and human health: a short review. Environ Sci Pollut Res 24(27):21530–21547. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-9910-8
Shruti VC, Jonathan MP, Rodriguez-Espinosa PF, Rodríguez-González F (2019) Microplastics in freshwater sediments of atoyac river basin, puebla city, Mexico. Environ Sci Pollut Res 654:154–163. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.11.054
Sighicelli M, Pietrelli L, Lecce F, Iannilli V, Falconieri M, Coscia L, Zampetti G (2018) Microplastic pollution in the surface waters of Italian Subalpine Lakes. Environ Pollut 236:645–651. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2018.02.008
Simon-Sánchez L, Grelaud M, Garcia-Orellana J, Ziveri P (2019) River Deltas as hotspots of microplastic accumulation: The case study of the Ebro River (NW Mediterranean). Sci Total Environ 687:1186–1196. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.06.168
Smith JA, Hodge JL, Kurtz BH, Garver JI (2017) The distribution of microplastic pollution in the Mohawk River. Mohawk Watershed Symposium. Available online https://www.researchgate.net/profile/John-Garver/publication/314543747_Proceedings_of_the_2017_Mohawk_Watershed_Symposium_Union_College_Schenectady_NY_17_Mb/links/58c339a8aca272e36dd0467c/Proceedings-of-the-2017-Mohawk-Watershed-Symposium-Union-College-Schenectady-NY-17-Mb.pdf#page=78. Accessed 20 May 2020
Sruthy S, Ramasamy EV (2017) Microplastic pollution in Vembanad Lake, Kerala, India: the first report of microplastics in lake and estuarine sediments in India. Environ Pollut 222:315–322. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2016.12.038
Su L, Cai H, Kolandhasamy P, Wu C, Rochman CM, Shi H (2018) Using the Asian clam as an indicator of microplastic pollution in freshwater ecosystems. Environ Pollut 234:347–355. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2017.11.075
Su L, Xue Y, Li L, Yang D, Kolandhasamy P, Li D, Shi H (2016) Microplastics in Taihu lake, China. Environ Pollut 216:711–719. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2016.06.036
Ta AT, Babel S, Haarstrick A (2020) Microplastics contamination in a high population density area of the Chao Phraya River ,Bangkok. J Eng Technol. https://doi.org/10.5614/j.eng.technol.sci.2020.52.4.6
Tamminga M, Stoewer SC, Fischer EK (2019) On the representativeness of pump water samples versus manta sampling in microplastic analysis. Environ Pollut 254:112970. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.112970
Tan X, Yu X, Cai L, Wang J, Peng J (2019) Microplastics and associated PAHs in surface water from the Feilaixia Reservoir in the Beijiang River, China. Chemosphere 221:834–840.
Thompson RC, Moore CJ, Vom Saal FS, Swan SH (2009) Plastics, the environment and human health: current consensus and future trends. Philos Trans R Soc 364(1526):2153–2166. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2009.0053
Thompson RC, Olsen Y, Mitchell RP, Davis A, Rowland SJ, John AW, Russell AE (2004) Lost at sea: Where is all the plastic? Science 304(5672):838–838. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1094559
Tibbetts J, Krause S, Lynch I, Sambrook Smith GH (2018) Abundance, distribution, and drivers of microplastic contamination in urban river environments. Water 10(11):1597. https://doi.org/10.3390/w10111597
Tofa TS, Kunjali KL, Paul S, Dutta J (2019) Visible light photocatalytic degradation of microplastic residues with zinc oxide nanorods. Environ Chem Lett 17(3):1341–1346. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-019-00859-z
Toumi H, Abidli S, Bejaoui M (2019) Microplastics in freshwater environment: the first evaluation in sediments from seven water streams surrounding the lagoon of Bizerte (Northern Tunisia). Environ Sci Pollut Res 26(14):14673–14682. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-04695-0
Turner S, Horton AA, Rose NL, Hall C (2019) A temporal sediment record of microplastics in an urban lake, London. UK J Paleolimnol 61(4):449–462. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10933-019-00071-7
van der Wal M, van der Meulen M, Tweehuijsen G, Peterlin M, Palatinus A, Kovac Viršek M (2015) SFRA0025: Identification and Assessment of Riverine Input of (Marine) Litter. Report for Michail Papadoyannakis, DG Environment, United Kingdom, pp 186. Available online https://portal.helcom.fi/meetings/PRESSURE%203-2015-278/MeetingDocuments/5-8_att%20Final%20Report%20for%20EC%20DG%20ENV%20-Identification%20and%20Assessment%20of%20Riverine%20Input%20of%20Marine%20Litter.pdf. Accessed 20 Feb 2020
Vaughan R, Turner SD, Rose NL (2017) Microplastics in the sediments of a UK urban lake. Environ Pollut 229:10–18. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2017.05.057
Vermaire JC, Pomeroy C, Herczegh SM, Haggart O, Murphy M (2017) Microplastic abundance and distribution in the open water and sediment of the Ottawa River, Canada, and its tributaries. Facets 2(1):301–314. https://doi.org/10.1139/facets-2016-0070
Vianello A, Boldrin A, Guerriero P, Moschino V, Rella R, Sturaro A, Da Ros L (2013) Microplastic particles in sediments of Lagoon of Venice, Italy: first observations on occurrence, spatial patterns and identification. Estuarine Coastal Shelf Sci 130:54–61. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecss.2013.03.022
Wang C, Xing R, Sun M, Ling W, Shi W, Cui S, An L (2020a) Microplastics profile in a typical urban river in Beijing. Sci Total Environ 743:140708. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.140708
Wang G, Lu J, Tong Y, Liu Z, Zhou H, Xiayihazi N (2020b) Occurrence and pollution characteristics of microplastics in surface water of the Manas River Basin. China Sci Total Environ 710:136099. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.136099
Wang Z, Qin Y, Li W, Yang W, Meng Q, Yang J (2019) Microplastic contamination in freshwater: first observation in Lake Ulansuhai, Yellow River Basin. China Environ Chem Lett 17(4):1821–1830. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-019-00888-8
Warrack S, Challis JK, Hanson ML, Rennie MD (2017) Microplastics flowing into Lake Winnipeg: densities, sources, flux, and fish exposures. Proc Manit Undergrad Sci Eng Res 3:5–15. https://doi.org/10.5203/pmuser.201730578
Watkins L, McGrattan S, Sullivan PJ, Walter MT (2019a) The effect of dams on river transport of microplastic pollution. Sci Total Environ 664:834–840. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.02.028
Watkins L, Sullivan PJ, Walter MT (2019b) A case study investigating temporal factors that influence microplastic concentration in streams under different treatment regimes. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26(21):21797–21807. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-04663-8
Wen X, Du C, Xu P, Zeng G, Huang D, Yin L, Tan S (2018) Microplastic pollution in surface sediments of urban water areas in Changsha, China: abundance, composition, surface textures. Mar Pollut Bull 136:414–423. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.09.043
Wessel CC, Lockridge GR, Battiste D, Cebrian J (2016) Abundance and characteristics of microplastics in beach sediments: insights into microplastic accumulation in northern Gulf of Mexico estuaries. Mar Pollut Bull 109(1):178–183. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2016.06.002
Wang WF, Ndungu AW, Li Z, Wang J (2017b) Microplastics pollution in inland freshwaters of China: a case study in urban surface waters of Wuhan, China. Sci Total Environ 575:1369–1374. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.09.213
Wang WF, Yuan W, Chen Y, Wang J (2018a) Microplastics in surface waters of dongting lake and hong lake. Sci Total Environ 633:539–545. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.03.211
Wang ZF, Su B, Xu X, Di D, Huang H, Mei K, Shang X (2018b) Preferential accumulation of small (< 300 μm) microplastics in the sediments of a coastal plain river network in eastern China. Water Res 144:393–401. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2018.07.050
Willis KA, Eriksen R, Wilcox C, Hardesty BD (2017) Microplastic distribution at different sediment depths in an urban estuary. Front Mar Sci 4:419. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2017.00419
Wu C, Zhang K, Xiong X (2018) Microplastic pollution in inland waters focusing on Asia. In: Wagner M, Lambert S (eds) Freshwater Microplastics: emerging environmental contaminants? Springer, Heidelberg, pp 85–99
Wu P, Tang Y, Dang M, Wang S, Jin H, Liu Y, Cai Z (2020) Spatial-temporal distribution of microplastics in surface water and sediments of Maozhou River within Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. Sci Total Environ 717:135187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.135187
Xiong X, Wu C, Elser JJ, Mei Z, Hao Y (2019) Occurrence and fate of microplastic debris in middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River–from inland to the sea. Sci Total Environ 659:66–73. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.12.313
Xiong X, Zhang K, Chen X, Shi H, Luo Z, Wu C (2018) Sources and distribution of microplastics in China’s largest inland lake–Qinghai Lake. Environ Pollut 235:899–906. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2017.12.081
Xu P, Peng G, Su L, Gao Y, Gao L, Li D (2018) Microplastic risk assessment in surface waters: A case study in the Changjiang Estuary, China. Mar Pollut Bull 133:647–654. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.06.020
Xu Q, Xing R, Sun M, Gao Y, An L (2020) Microplastics in sediments from an interconnected river-estuary region. Sci Total Environ 729:139025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139025
Yan M, Nie H, Xu K, He Y, Hu Y, Huang Y (2019) Microplastic abundance, distribution and composition in the Pearl River along Guangzhou city and Pearl River estuary, China. Chemosphere 217:879–886. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2018.11.093
Yin L, Jiang C, Wen X, Du C, Zhong W, Feng Z, Ma Y (2019) Microplastic pollution in surface water of urban lakes in Changsha, China. Int J Environ Res Public Health 16(9):1650. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16091650
Yin L, Wen X, Du C, Jiang J, Wu L, Long ZY (2020) Comparison of the abundance of microplastics between rural and urban areas: a case study from East Dongting Lake. Chemosphere 244:125486. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemosphere.2019.125486
Yonkos LT, Friedel EA, Perez-Reyes AC, Ghosal S, Arthur CD (2014) Microplastics in four estuarine rivers in the Chesapeake Bay, USA. Environ Sci Technol 48(24):14195–14202. https://doi.org/10.1021/es5036317
Yu X, Peng J, Wang J, Wang K, Bao S (2016) Occurrence of microplastics in the beach sand of the Chinese inner sea: the Bohai Sea. Environ Pollut 214:722–730. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2016.04.080
Yuan W, Liu X, Wang W, Di M, Wang J (2019) Microplastic abundance, distribution and composition in water, sediments, and wild fish from Poyang Lake, China. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 170:180–187. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoenv.2018.11.126
Zbyszewski M, Corcoran PL (2011) Distribution and degradation of fresh water plastic particles along the beaches of Lake Huron. Can Water Air Soil Pollut 220(1–4):365–372. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11270-011-0760-6
Zbyszewski M, Corcoran PL, Hockin A (2014) Comparison of the distribution and degradation of plastic debris along shorelines of the Great Lakes North America. J Great Lakes Res 40(2):288–299. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2014.02.012
Zhang K, Chen X, Xiong X, Ruan Y, Zhou H, Wu C, Lam PK (2019) The hydro-fluctuation belt of the three Gorges reservoir: source or sink of microplastics in the water? Environ Pollu 248:279–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2019.02.043
Zhang K, Gong W, Lv J, Xiong X, Wu C (2015) Accumulation of floating microplastics behind the three Gorges Dam. Environ Pollut 204:117–123. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2015.04.023
Zhang K, Shi H, Peng J, Wang Y, Xiong X, Wu C, Lam PK (2018) Microplastic pollution in China’s inland water systems: A review of findings, methods, characteristics, effects, and management. Sci Total Environ 630:1641–1653. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.02.300
Zhang K, Su J, Xiong X, Wu X, Wu C, Liu J (2016) Microplastic pollution of lakeshore sediments from remote lakes in Tibet plateau, China. Environ Pollut 219:450–455. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2016.05.048
Zhang K, Xiong X, Hu H, Wu C, Bi Y, Wu Y, Liu J (2017) Occurrence and characteristics of microplastic pollution in Xiangxi Bay of Three Gorges Reservoir. China Environ Sci Technol 51(7):3794–3801. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.7b00369
Zhang X, Leng Y, Liu X, Huang K, Wang J (2020) Microplastics’ pollution and risk assessment in an urban river: a case study in the Yongjiang River, Nanning City. South China Exposure Health 12(2):141–151. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12403-018-00296-3
Zhao S, Wang T, Zhu L, Xu P, Wang X, Gao L, Li D (2019) Analysis of suspended microplastics in the Changjiang Estuary: Implications for riverine plastic load to the ocean. Water Res 161:560–569. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2019.06.019
Zhao S, Zhu L, Li D (2015) Microplastic in three urban estuaries, China. Environ Pollut 206:597–604. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2015.08.027
Zhao S, Zhu L, Wang T, Li D (2014) Suspended microplastics in the surface water of the Yangtze Estuary System, China: first observations on occurrence, distribution. Mar Pollut Bull 86(1–2):562–568. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2014.06.032
Zhou G, Wang Q, Zhang J, Li Q, Wang Y, Wang M, Huang X (2020) Distribution and characteristics of microplastics in urban waters of seven cities in the Tuojiang River basin. China Environ Res 189:109893. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2020.109893
Funding
This manuscript was supported by Iran National Science Foundation (INSF) under the contract No. 97002416 and CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCI CAS PRESIDENT’S INTERNATIONAL FELLOWSHIP INITIATIVE Grant No. 2021VEA0004.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
Razeghi and Hamidian had the idea for the article, Razeghi performed the literature search and data analysis, Razeghi and Hamidian drafted, and Wu, Zhang and Yang critically revised the work.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflicts of interest
The authors have no conflict of interests to disclose.
Consent for publication
All authors agreed with the content and all gave explicit consent to submit, and they obtained consent from the responsible authorities.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Razeghi, N., Hamidian, A.H., Wu, C. et al. Microplastic sampling techniques in freshwaters and sediments: a review. Environ Chem Lett 19, 4225–4252 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-021-01227-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10311-021-01227-6