Evaluating Conditions Contributing to Freshwater and Atmospheric Microplastic Inputs into Narragansett Bay

Education Level

Undergraduate

Faculty Advisor(s)

Professor Lillian Jeznach

Academic Department(s)

Engineering

Comments

This research was presented at the 2024 Rhode Island Summer Undergraduate Research Symposium, held on Friday, July 26, at the University of Rhode Island and supported by RI NSF EPSCoR.

Symposium Date

2024

Abstract

Microplastics pollution is a widespread and growing concern for the entire world, especially for Rhode Island due to the high urban land cover and the importance of surrounding marine life to the local economy. This study aims to look at how different conditions affect the freshwater concentrations and atmospheric fluxes of different types of microplastics to the Narragansett Bay. A custom designed atmospheric microplastic deposition collector installed on campus and used to measure atmospheric microplastic fallout. Freshwater samples were collected at different sites along three major rivers in Rhode Island. The river samples were digested using potassium hydroxide since they contained greater concentrations of organic matter than the atmospheric samples. All samples were stained with nile red. The stained samples fluoresce under a blue light, which allowed for easier microplastic counting and identification under the microscope. Blank samples were collected and analyzed for all freshwater and atmospheric samples. Data was analyzed to understand conditions contributing to increases or decreases in microplastic freshwater concentrations and atmospheric fluxes. Atmospheric microplastic fluxes were analyzed with respect to wind speed. For freshwater samples, microplastic concentrations were compared at different locations along the river relative to wastewater treatment plants and their proximity to urban/rural locations. Based on the analysis, the majority of microplastic particles in both the atmospheric and freshwater samples were fibers then fragments. In addition, greater atmospheric fluxes were measured at lower wind speeds. Data thus far do not indicate significantly greater microplastic concentrations downstream of wastewater treatment plants. This project is part of a larger long-term microplastic sampling campaign involving undergraduate researchers to develop a database of freshwater and atmospheric microplastic data. This research will help to better understand microplastic distributions across the state which is needed in order to develop effective solutions and technology to combat the abundance of microplastics that are a growing global and local issue.

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