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What are Microplastics, and How do they Infiltrate the Water?
They can come from two different types of sources (much like a bibliography), with primary and secondary sources that contribute to pollution in their own way. Primary microplastics are usually plastic parts that are produced already in a microscopic state. Synthetic textiles (such as microfibers) are a major contributor, in addition to abrasion and exfoliating beads found in toothpastes and facial washes.
Secondary microplastics are microplastics that arise from the fragments of larger plastic items such as plastic bottles or packaging. These microplastics can accelerate their formation through UV exposure, which is especially dangerous if it is in open water with sunlight exposure. Below is a chart that illustrates the many destinations of secondary microplastics, with surface water being a major focus.
One might think then that microplastics are certainly a pollutant, but only to water sources such as lakes and rivers, and surely, they would not be affected. This could not be farther from the truth. A study has discovered that “Improper waste management practices and the escalating generation of plastic waste have led to a substantial release of plastics into water bodies (Hopewell et al., 2009).” Wastewater treatment plants are able to treat microplastic contamination in waters, however their effluents (liquid waste that is discharged) are still highly concentrated with microplastics. Statistically, a single Wastewater treatment plant can “release up to ten billion MP particles per day, and globally, WWTPs release around eight trillion MP particles daily into aquatic ecosystems (Enfrin et al., 2019; Rochman et al., 2015).” Here, these plastics continue to devolve with the assistance of UV light, abrasion, and general age, which can leach into and “contaminate the source water of downstream drinking water treatment plants (DWTPs) (Simonich et al., 2013; Zhen et al., 2018),” effectively poisoning drinking water with microplastics, which find its way into the drinker.
As stated earlier, improper waste management practices are one major reason why drinking waters can be contaminated, and certain areas that have lower funding and that contain vulnerable populations often have “inefficient or even non-existent waste management systems.”
This information reveals the systemic nature of this environmental injustice, as the water pollution of vulnerable areas are often due to the disregard or lack of fundamental sanitation resources provided to them. Certain populations are also relegated to areas with a higher center of waste in the water, such as displaced Indigenous communities that have had their land taken for oil extraction. The cruel action of stealing the Indigenous land is only compounded with the addition of the oil extraction industry, as they deposit plastic byproducts into the nearby waters.