New report on the city’s sources of microplastics
Emma Fältström, a PhD student at Sweden Water Research, and Heléne Österlund at Luleå University of Technology have in their report “μrban Plastics – Sources, sinks and flows of microplastics in the urban environment” mapped out how microplastics from land enter our water environments, with a focus on stormwater.
Cigarette butts, paint, tire particles, and particles from the washing of synthetic clothes are the largest sources of microplastics in a city, in that order.
Hopefully, the results will be useful for municipalities when they want to investigate their sources and pathways of microplastics, as the results can be adapted to different cities.
The report is available for download on the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency’s website via this link.