Current status and future perspectives of microplastic pollution in typical cryospheric regions

Abstract

The cryosphere is the term used to describe the frozen areas of the Earth, including all forms of snow and ice, which are primarily influenced by anthropogenic pollutants through atmospheric transport. In this review, we described the current status of newly emergent pollutant-microplastics-in the snow and ice of typical cryospheric regions (e.g., Arctic, Antarctic, Alps, Tibetan Plateau, and Andes), discussed their transport pathways, and provided perspectives for future research. A brief summary of snow and ice sampling, pretreatment, and the identification of microplastics in cryospheric regions suggests that standard procedures are inadequate and urgently require improvement. Microplastics are widely distributed in snow and ice across the typical cryospheric regions, indicating the ubiquitous distribution of microplastics in

Microplastics and nanoplastics in the marine-atmosphere environment

“…cloud formation [ 22 ] and radiative forcing [ 23 ] (Supplementary Note 2 ). Although MnP have diverse colours, they and are hypothesized to influence surface albedo and accelerate cryosphere melting when deposited on snow and ice [ 19,24 ]. In addition, laboratory-based experiments demonstrate that atmospheric MnP particles are effective ice-nucleation particles, potentially influencing cloud lifetime and albedo [ 22,25,26 ].…”

Impact of global warming on regional cycling of mercury and persistent organic pollutants on the Tibetan Plateau: current progress and future prospects

“…Among them, the cryosphere, including glaciers, frozen ground and snow, is the dominated sink of Hg and POPs. [176][177][178] The continuous warming of the global climate intensies the ablation of glaciers and permafrost across the TP, which releases massive quantities of Hg and POPs accumulated through deposition, which then further ow into glacial runoff and harm the entire TP ecosystem, leading to eventual deposition of Hg and POPs in glacial runoff in lakes.…”

Air Impurities Affecting the Melting of Icebergs and the Possibility of Airborne Microplastics Influence on Icebergs

“…In combination with sample processing methods, such instruments have been developed for the detection of microplastics [6]. This sampling method is characterized by high efficiency and that the pumped air flux can be adjusted according to the purpose of the experiment, but electricity is necessary [7]. On the other hand, using the unique optical characteristics of MPs (due to chemical composition and structure), microplastics in water and ice (LAIs) can be detected by near-infrared (NIR) radiation [8].…”

“…Moreover, MPs are not only prominent in the atmosphere but also identified as a pollutant in both terrestrial and aquatic habitats [5]. The article by Zhang et al (2022) claims that, artic can be the particular receptor region for MPs due to its sensitivity. Therefore, the emergence of MPs may play a role in glacial melting as BC and OC.…”