In this study, the most popular Chinese social media platform (WeChat) was analysed, and online dissemination data (2015–2020) for six years was collected and comprehensively analysed to determine public attention, attitudes, and opinions regarding MPs. Content analysis and generalised linear models showed that MP-related information was widely propagated through diverse social groups, especially traditional media publishers (i.e., newspapers and television), non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and developed coastal regions. From the study, it was concluded that the public has paid more attention to MP pollution in marine environments and human health-related issues (e.g., food and drinking water). The paper emphasises that increased environmental awareness can evoke a greater public willingness to reduce plastic usage. To deepen environmental education, more efforts are needed to include more impactful publishers living around important ecological zones and regions with high consumption of plastic products (e.g., agricultural areas with excessive use of mulch) to propagate knowledge and information on risk, source, and pollution control on social media platforms.
The current study examines the contamination of microplastics in three greenhouse types: abandoned, normal, and simple. The findings revealed that the abundance of microplastics was found to be the highest in the abandoned greenhouse, followed by the normal greenhouse and simple greenhouse. The mean abundance of microplastic organic fertilizer and irrigation water was also high.[…]
The study examines the distribution of residual film after eight years of film mulching in mid-April 2018. Results from the study revealed that eight years of mulching significantly increased the quantity of agricultural mulch film residues in the soil. The size of residual film fragments was found to vary from 0.25 cm2 to 109 cm2,[…]
A study in Yuanmou County, Yunnan Province, investigated microplastic pollution in different land uses, including facility farmland, traditional farmland, orchard, grassland, and woodland. Results showed a significant difference in microplastic abundance and characteristics between different land use types. Facility farmlands, traditional farmlands, and orchard lands had higher microplastic abundance than grasslands and woodlands. The main[…]
The study analysed 225 soil samples from maize planting zones in northern China, revealing that long-term plastic film mulching increases microplastic pollution in agricultural soils. The abundance of microplastics was significantly higher in mulched soils (754 ± 477 items kg-1) than in non-mulched soils (376 ± 149 items kg-1). The length of time with film[…]
The study examined the relative abundances and morphological distributions of microplastics (MPs) in water, sediments, and farmland soils in the Caohai Lake region. The estuary in the study area was considered a potential sink for MP transportation. Transparent and black MPs accounted for a large proportion of MPs in the five environments, with possible sources[…]