Tackling microplastics pollution in global environment through integration of applied technology, policy instruments, and legislation

Kurniawan TA 1 , Haider A 2 , Mohyuddin A 3 , Fatima R 2 , Salman M 2 , Shaheen A 2 Show all authors , Ahmad HM 4 , Al-Hazmi HE 5 , Othman MHD 6 , Aziz F 7 , Anouzla A 8 , Ali I 9

Affiliations 

  • 1 College of Ecology and the Environment, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361102, Fujian, PR China. Electronic address: tonni@xmu.edu.cn
  • 2 Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore 54770, Pakistan
  • 3 Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore 54770, Pakistan. Electronic address: ayesha.mohyuddin@umt.edu.pk
  • 4 Department of Chemistry, School of Science, University of Management and Technology, Lahore 54770, Pakistan; Department of Chemistry, School of Science, Tianjin University, Tianjin 300072, PR China
  • 5 Department of Sanitary Engineering, Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Gdańsk University of Technology, Gdańsk, Poland
  • 6 Advanced Membrane Technology Research Centre (AMTEC), Faculty of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 Skudai, Johor Bahru, Malaysia
  • 7 Laboratory of Water, Biodiversity & Climate Changes, Faculty of Science Semlalia, Cadi Ayyad University, BP 2390, 40000, Marrakech, Morocco
  • 8 Department of Process Engineering and Environment, Faculty of Science and Technology, University Hassan II of Casablanca, Mohammedia, Morocco
  • 9 Department of Chemistry, Jamia Millia Islamia (Central University), Jamia Nagar, New Delhi 110025, India
J Environ Manage, 2023 Nov 15;346:118971.
PMID: 37729832 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118971

Abstract

Microplastic pollution is a serious environmental problem that affects both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Small particles with size of less than 5 mm, known as microplastics (MPs), persist in the environment and pose serious threats to various species from micro-organisms to humans. However, terrestrial environment has received less attention than the aquatic environment, despite being a major source of MPs that eventually reaches water body. To reflect its novelty, this work aims at providing a comprehensive overview of the current state of MPs pollution in the global environment and various solutions to address MP pollution by integrating applied technology, policy instruments, and legislation. This review critically evaluates and compares the existing technologies for MPs detection, removal, and degradation, and a variety of policy instruments and legislation that can support the prevention and management of MPs pollution scientifically. Furthermore, this review identifies the gaps and challenges in addressing the complex and diverse nature of MPs and calls for joint actions and collaboration from stakeholders to contain MPs. As water pollution by MPs is complex, managing it effectively requires their responses through the utilization of technology, policy instruments, and legislation. It is evident from a literature survey of 228 published articles (1961-2023) that existing water technologies are promising to remove MPs pollution. Membrane bioreactors and ultrafiltration achieved 90% of MPs removal, while magnetic separation was effective at extracting 88% of target MPs from wastewater. In biological process, one kg of wax worms could consume about 80 g of plastic/day. This means that 100 kg of wax worms can eat about 8 kg of plastic daily, or about 2.9 tons of plastic annually. Overall, the integration of technology, policy instrument, and legislation is crucial to deal with the MPs issues.

* Title and MeSH Headings from MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

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