Researchers from Waseda University found microplastics in cloud water collected over Mt. Fuji and Mt. Oyamo in Japan. They identified nine different types of plastic polymers with particle diameters ranging from 7.1 to 94.6 μm by using advanced imaging techniques.
The study was published in the journal Environmental Chemical Letters.
Several studies have established the presence of microplastics in land, water, the lungs of wild birds, and even the human placenta and heart. The severity of the plastic problem grows more alarming as the implication of microplastics in most ecosystems becomes clearer.
Microplastics go from land and ocean to being airborne
There are several ways bits of plastic might find a way to become airborne. Plastic breaks down into microscopic bits over a long period of time. The original source could be larger plastic pieces, plastic microbeads, or resin pellets used for plastic manufacture.
This plastic debris finds its way into nooks and crannies on land and finds its way into the ocean with water run-off. Whether it’s from dust, tire wear, and tear, or sea spray, strong winds carry them off into the air and across the globe.
On average a human might inhale microplastics anywhere from a minimum of 363 meters to a maximum of 1,019 meters
Data from an investigation by the University of Portsmouth and Good Morning Britain
Microplastic pollution has been found in the remotest parts of the globe. Airborne microplastics mean – it’s in the air we breathe, the food we eat, and the water we drink; it’s in our hearts, lungs, and blood.
The making of water-loving microplastics
Plastics are hydrophobic – meaning they repel water. But being exposed to ultraviolet light for a prolonged period of time turns them into water-loving magnets all the while producing greenhouse gases, leading to “plastic air pollution”.
The presence of hydrophilic microplastics in the free troposphere (the lowest layer of the earth’s atmosphere) has huge implications for cloud formation and climate change.
Influence of microplastics on cloud formation and climate change
Hydrophilic bits of plastics can act as “condensation nuclei”. Condensation nuclei form the starting point upon which water vapor starts to condense and form clouds. The heavy presence of microplastics in the troposphere can lead to artificial cloud seeding and influence cloud formation.
According to a previous study, the free troposphere is a major highway for high-speed winds, contributing to the dispersal of airborne microplastics across the globe.
Researchers advise proactiveness in finding a solution to the microplastic problem
According to data from an investigation by the University of Portsmouth and Good Morning Britain, on average a human might inhale microplastics anywhere from a minimum of 363 meters (the height of the Eiffel Tower) to a maximum of 1,019 meters (the height of the Snowdon Mountain).
Emphasizing the severity of the problem, lead author, Hiroshi Okochi, says “If the issue of ‘plastic air pollution’ is not addressed proactively, climate change and ecological risks may become a reality, causing irreversible and serious environmental damage in the future.”
