Organic fertilizer and irrigation water are the primary sources of microplastics in the facility soil, Beijing

Abstract

The large-scale utilization of plastic products in agricultural facility production has resulted in considerable accumulation of microplastics in the soil. However, there is a lack of systematic research on the accumulation and distribution of microplastics in facility agriculture. This study examined the presence of microplastics in the 15 representatives of Beijing facility agriculture soil in five districts with different planting years, and assessed the potential pollution risks. The abundance of microplastics in soil layers at a depth of 0–10, 10–20, and 20–30 cm was 896.5 ± 80.0 (range, 160–2120), 630.6 ± 47.0 (180–1340), and 445.3 ± 47.0 (80–1480) items/kg, respectively. Overall, the microplastics were primarily fiber-shaped (72.2 %), white (75.9 %), 1–2 mm in size (37.9 %), and composed of polypropylene and polyethene. The risk assessment indices of the microplastics in the 0–10, 10–20, and 20–30 cm soil layers were 272.1, 289.5, and 291.6, respectively, representing a risk level of 4 in each case. Using the conditional fragmentation model, we found that the microplastics in facility soil featured low stability and small sizes, and their primary sources were organic fertilizer and irrigation water. The number of mulching years, irrigation method, and the amount of organic fertilizer applied, influenced the accumulation of microplastics in the facility soil. This study provides scientific evidence supporting the pollution levels and need for risk control related to microplastics in facility soils.