| The accumulation of plastics in the environment has been of increasing concern, especially in the aquatic environment. Recently, plastics and microplastics in the terrestrial environment have been gaining attention. Even though data is still limited, it is estimated that the input of plastics in soil is considerable. Sources of plastics in soil are manifold, including the use of secondary raw material fertilisers or plastic based equipment in agriculture, transport and deposition via wind and water or tire wear particles from traffic.
Plastics in soil do not add any value to soil fertility or soil health. On the contrary, literature suggests that plastics in soil pose negative effects on soil physical and chemical parameters and soil organisms.
The aim of this project is gather first practical knowledge on soil plastic pollution by investigating around 100 different soils across Austria. As a starting point, a standardised sampling instruction for (micro-) plastic analysis in soils of different origin will be developed and tested.
Visual methods for investigation of plastics >1 mm according to existing methods will be applied and verified with material specification using infrared spectroscopy. Microplastic particles in the range of 0.05 – 1 mm will be analysed with FT-IR microspectroscopy and imaging. On selected sites, the amount of tire wear particles will be quantified. |