For the first time, scientists discovered microplastics — plastic particles smaller than a grain of rice — in freshly fallen Antarctic snow, which they believe has the potential to alter climate by speeding up ice melting.
The findings, which were recently published in the journal The Cryosphere, highlight a major threat to the Antarctic region.
Microplastics have been proven to have harmful effects on environmental health, limiting growth, reproduction, and general biological activities in creatures, as well as negative consequences for humans, according to past research.
Alex Aves, a Ph.D. student at New Zealand’s University of Canterbury, collected snow samples from Antarctica’s Ross Ice Shelf in late 2019.
There had been few investigations into the prevalence of microplastics in the air at the time, and it was unknown how prevalent the problem was, according to the researchers.
Aves used a chemical analysis approach to determine the type of plastic particles found in snow samples.
The colour, size, and shape of the plastic particles were also examined under a microscope.
The researchers discovered an average of 29 microplastic particles per litre of melted snow, which is higher than previous marine concentrations detected in the Ross Sea and Antarctic sea ice.
The density of microplastics was approximately three times higher near the scientific stations on Ross Island, Scott Base, and McMurdo Station, Antarctica’s largest station, they added, with amounts similar to those seen in Italian glacier debris.
PET, which is often used to produce soft drink bottles and garments, was the most prevalent type of plastic discovered.
The sources of microplastics were investigated.
Microplastics may have travelled thousands of kilometres in the air, according to atmospheric modelling, but the presence of people in Antarctica is likely to have left a microplastic ‘footprint,’ the researchers stated.
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