Soil microplastic pollution under different land uses in tropics, southwestern China

Terrestrial ecosystems encounter emerging risks of microplastic (MP) pollution. However, the distribution characteristics of soil MPs across different land uses in tropical areas have remain largely unknown. We sampled soils from two natural ecosystems (primary and secondary forests) and two artificial ecosystems (rubber and banana plantations) in tropical region of southwestern China. We aimed to evaluate the overall characteristics of soil MPs and analyze the distribution and source of MPs in different soil layers and land uses. We found that the dominant size of soil MPs were <1 mm and the major shapes were fragments and fibres, with colours blue, yellow, and green-blue. Most MPs were polyethylene (PE, 59.6%), rayon (RY, 12.0%), and polypropylene (PP, 10.9%). In artificial ecosystems, the abundance of MPs in the top soil (0-10 cm) was approximately 2.5 times that of in deep soil (10-20 cm), whereas it was only 50% in the natural ecosystems. The abundance of MPs in banana plantations reached as high as 10975.0 +/- 261.0 particles kg(-1) (p kg(-1)), which was about 10 times that of in rubber plantations (1112.5 +/- 151.6 p kg(-1)) and 18 times of those in secondary and primary forests (612.5 +/- 119.2 p kg(-1) and 637.5 +/- 181.6 p kg(-1)). Anthropogenic and atmospheric transport may be the major sources of soil MPs for artificial ecosystems to natural ecosystems, respectively. Our results revealed the widespread presence of soil MPs in tropical areas, from artificial ecosystems to natural ecosystems, in both the top and deep soil layers. MP pollution in artificial ecosystems is considerably serious than that in natural ecosystems. Our study provides important support for further research on ecosystem risks pertaining to MPs in the context of land use changes, and promotes the development of effective measures and policies to control MP pollution in tropical areas.

Automated summary

The study revealed the distribution characteristics and environmental risks of soil microplastics in tropical areas. The major sources of soil microplastics were identified as anthropogenic and atmospheric transport, with higher abundance in artificial ecosystems compared to natural ecosystems. Banana plantations showed the highest microplastic abundance, while rubber plantations and secondary/primary forests had lower levels of microplastics.