In what is another sign of how polluted our environment is with plastic. When Hurricane Larry moved north in the Atlantic Ocean in 2021, avoiding the U.S. East Coast, a special device awaited it on the coast of Newfoundland. Since hurricanes feed on warm ocean waters, scientists wondered if such a storm could capture microplastics from the surface of the sea and deposit them when it made landfall. Larry was truly a perfect storm: because it had not made landfall before reaching the island, anything that fell from it would have been collected from the water or air, rather than, for example, in a densely populated city where microplastics would be expected to be abundant.
Environmental Effects of Microplastics
Over time, humanity continues to produce more and more plastic overall, and thus the environment becomes more polluted with microplastics. The previously prevailing thought was that microplastics would flow into the ocean and remain there: for instance, washing synthetic clothes like polyester releases millions of microfibers in each washing cycle, which then flow into the sea in wastewater. But recent research has shown that the seas actually eject particles into the atmosphere to return and fall on land, whether when breaking waves or when bubbles rise to the surface, spraying microplastics into sea breezes.
The Impact of Hurricane Larry on Newfoundland
The device used in Newfoundland was very simple: a glass cylinder containing a little ultra-pure water, securely fastened to the ground with wooden stakes. Every six hours before, during, and after the hurricane, researchers would come and empty the water, which would have collected any particles that fell – whether with rain or without it – on Newfoundland. “It’s a place that experiences a lot of severe weather phenomena,” says earth scientist Anna Ryan from Dalhousie University, the lead author of the paper. “Moreover, it is a relatively remote place, with a very low population density. So you don’t have many sources of microplastics nearby.”
The Hurricane’s Effect on the Environment
The team found that many microplastics fell on Newfoundland before and after Hurricane Larry, with tens of thousands of microplastics falling on every square meter of land daily. But when the hurricane struck, these numbers surged to 113,000 particles. “We found a lot of microplastics deposited during the peak of the hurricane,” Ryan says, “but also, overall deposition was relatively high compared to previous studies.” These studies were conducted under natural conditions, but in more remote locations, Ryan says.
The Impact of Microplastics on the Environment
The researchers also used a technique known as backward trajectory modeling – a simulation of where the air that reached the device came from. This confirmed that Larry had captured microplastics in the sea, lifted them into the air, and dropped them on Newfoundland. In fact, previous research estimates that between 12 and 21 million metric tons of microplastics swirl in the top 200 meters of the Atlantic Ocean, which was an important estimate because it did not account for microfibers. The Newfoundland study indicates that Larry happened to pass over a garbage patch in the North Atlantic Gyre, where floating plastic accumulates.
Environmental Pollution with Microplastics
Microplastic pollution comes from many sources – our clothes, car tires, paint chips, crushed plastic bottles, and bags – all of which mix into a sort of multi-polymer soup in the environment. This is true in the seas and in the sky: in remote areas of the American West, similar microplastic sampling devices to those used in Newfoundland have collected enormous numbers of particles that fall as plastic rain. Microplastics have not only become airborne but have also become an integral part of Earth’s atmosphere.
Impact
Microplastics on Living Organisms
Due to the easy transmission of microplastics via winds and ocean currents, environments that were once pristine are now polluted. Scientists are racing to understand how these particles affect the living organisms there. For example, microplastic pollution from Europe may have contaminated the Arctic, thus polluting Melosira arctica algae that grow on the underside of sea ice. Algae are the base of the food chain in the Arctic, meaning that all types of organisms consume them along with the accumulated microplastics.
Spread of Plastic Particles
As if hurricanes were not bad enough, they provide another way for plastic particles to spread to places they do not belong. Microplastics easily travel on winds and ocean currents, and what were once considered pristine environments are no longer so. Scientists are racing to understand how these particles affect the living organisms there. For example, microplastic pollution from Europe may have contaminated the Arctic, thus polluting Melosira arctica algae that grow on the underside of sea ice. Algae are the base of the food chain in the Arctic, meaning that all types of organisms consume them along with the accumulated microplastics.
Conclusion
In the end, Hurricane Larry serves as another example of the ways in which plastic particles spread to places they do not belong. Scientists must work quickly to understand the impact of these particles on the environment and living organisms, and develop solutions to reduce plastic use and dispose of it properly. It is one of the significant environmental challenges that must be faced to maintain the health of our planet and protect wildlife and marine life.
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