Microplastics in Antarctica - a Plastic Legacy in the Antarctic Snow?

Jones-Williams, Kirstie ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4343-4725; Rowlands, Emily; Primpke, Sebastian; Galloway, Tamara; Cole, Matthew; Waluda, Claire ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3517-5233; Manno, Clara ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3337-6173. 2025 Microplastics in Antarctica - a Plastic Legacy in the Antarctic Snow? Science of The Total Environment, 966, 178543. 12, pp. 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.178543

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Abstract/Summary

Microplastic pollution in remote inland Antarctica is largely unknown. This study explored the plastic footprint of snow from remote Antarctic camps: Union Glacier, Schanz Glacier and the South Pole. Refined automated FTIR techniques enabled interrogation of microplastics (including fibres) to a lower detection limit of 11 μm in Antarctic snow for the first time. Microplastics were pervasive (73–3099 MP L−1). The majority (95 %) measured <50 μm, indicating that previous microplastic reports in Antarctica may be underestimated, due to analytical restrictions. Plastic polymer composition and concentration did not vary significantly between sites, with dominant polymers being polyamide (PA), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene (PE) and synthetic rubber. Results indicate that even in the earth's most remote regions, humans are leaving a plastic legacy in the snow, illustrating the importance of remote, cryospheric regions as critical study sites for determining temporal fluxes in microplastic pollution.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.178543
ISSN:	0028-0836
Additional Keywords:	Microplastic, Pollution, Antarctica, FTIR, Atmospheric Plastic, Snow
Date made live:	06 Feb 2025 15:23 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/536046

Item Type:

Publication - Article

Digital Object Identifier (DOI):

10.1016/j.scitotenv.2025.178543

ISSN:

0028-0836

Additional Keywords:

Microplastic, Pollution, Antarctica, FTIR, Atmospheric Plastic, Snow

Date made live:

06 Feb 2025 15:23 +0 (UTC)

URI:

https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/536046