2023 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference

March 5-7, 2023 • Cincinnati, OH

5/20/2019 | 10:15 AM - 10:30 AM | RIVERINE MICROPLASTIC: LAND-USE EFFECTS AND INTERACTIONS WITH FISH | 151 G

RIVERINE MICROPLASTIC: LAND-USE EFFECTS AND INTERACTIONS WITH FISH

Microplastic is a contaminant of emerging concern globally. Recent studies show microplastic is abundant in freshwater ecosystems, but assessments of microplastic sources, biological interactions, and budgets in freshwaters are lacking. We investigated the links between land-use, spatial scale, seasonality, and microplastic abundance in water and sediment in 9 headwater streams and 8 major rivers throughout Lake Michigan’s watershed. Urban and agricultural land-use were positively related to water column microplastic concentrations across all sites, and watershed forest coverage showed a negative relationship. Microplastic concentration in benthic sediment was 4 to 45 times greater than surface water concentrations. Microplastic concentrations were greater in major tributaries compared to headwater streams and were on average 3 times greater during summer compared to fall and spring. Results show microplastic abundance in freshwater habitats varies across seasons, is influenced by land-use, and deposition to sediment may be a long term microplastic sink. Ongoing work will integrate these data with measurements of seasonal microplastic abundance in common macroinvertebrate and fish taxa, and with assessments of microplastic-associated microbial communities.

Aquatic-terrestrial Linkage
Landuse
Pollution

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Presenters/Authors

Rae McNeish (), California State University Bakersfield, rae.mcneish@gmail.com;