Microplastics are ‘littering’ riverbeds

Microscopic plastic beads, fragments and fibres are littering riverbeds across the UK – from rural streams to urban waterways. This is according to a study that analysed sediments from rivers in north-west England. Scientists from the University of Manchester tested river sediments at 40 sites throughout Greater Manchester and found "microplastics everywhere". There is evidence that such small particles can enter the food chain.The findings, published in the journal Nature Geoscience, are the first from a "systematic basin-wide" study, the researchers say. In a first round of tests, just one of the sites – in the upper reaches of the River Goyt, which is one of the tributaries of the River Mersey – contained no plastic. But when the researchers returned to that site to repeat their test, that area had become contaminated. "I think that it is likely that there are even higher concentrations in some of the large rivers passing through global megacities," said lead researcher Dr Rachel Hurley.

Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-43363545

Posted by admin on Mar 13 2018. Filed under News Worldwide. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry