Researchers Find Microplastics In Clouds
One of drinking water’s most challenging contamination problems is even more widespread than previously known, as researchers discover the contaminants are literally falling from the sky.
“Clouds now contain microscopic pieces of plastic that in turn are causing ‘plastic rainfall,’ according to a new study,” the Independent reported. “Scientists fear that these particles of less than 5 mm — known as microplastics — could be contaminating ‘nearly everything we eat and drink.’”
Microplastics, which enter the environment through any number of plastic products, might be having unknown health impacts on consumers. And while there are promising solutions in development, the contaminants are so small that they are virtually impossible to eliminate during the drinking water treatment process.
“One study showed that 83% of drinking water samples taken from around the world contained microplastics, with 94% of U.S. samples containing them,” per Yahoo! News. “Other experts are wary of microplastics because of the limited information, the known toxicity associated with certain plastics, and how widespread microplastics have become.”
Now, researchers from a Japanese university have found that microplastics are even present in airborne cloud water.
“In the study, researchers analyzed cloud water collected from the summit of Mount Fuji, the southeastern foothills of Mt. Fuji (Tarobo), and the summit of Mt. Oyama in Japan, at altitudes ranging between 1,300 to 3,776 meters,” according to the Independent. “Scientists used advanced imaging techniques to determine the presence of airborne microplastics (AMP) in the cloud water and examined their physical and chemical properties.”
In addition to highlighting how widespread microplastics are in the environment, the researchers raised alarms about how their presence in the atmosphere threatens the planet’s ecology and biodiversity. Beyond the potential damage microplastics could be doing to consumers through drinking water, these conclusions led the researchers to issue some stark warnings.
“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,” a researcher said, per the Independent.
To read more about how drinking water treatment operations address contaminants like microplastics, visit Water Online’s Contaminant Removal Solutions Center.