The utility of monitoring snow for microplastics in the Arctic: A pilot study from Iqaluktuuttiaq, Nunavut
Plastic pollution, including microplastics (<5 mm) has been identified as an emerging contaminant of Arctic concern and has been observed in wildlife, water, sediment, air, and snow. Because snow is relatively easy to sample and process for microplastics, it may be a useful compartment to monitor...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Canadian Science Publishing
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Arctic Science |
| Online Access: | https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/AS-2023-0041 |
| _version_ | 1827322434574876672 |
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| author | Bonnie M. Hamilton Les N. Harris Jennifer F. Provencher Chelsea M. Rochman |
| author_facet | Bonnie M. Hamilton Les N. Harris Jennifer F. Provencher Chelsea M. Rochman |
| author_sort | Bonnie M. Hamilton |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Plastic pollution, including microplastics (<5 mm) has been identified as an emerging contaminant of Arctic concern and has been observed in wildlife, water, sediment, air, and snow. Because snow is relatively easy to sample and process for microplastics, it may be a useful compartment to monitor to assesspatterns of microplastic contamination in polar regions. Microplastics can enter the Arctic through both long-range transport pathways and from local sources. By sampling snow across spatial scales, and multiple distances from local communities, researchers can explore local and distant sources of microplastics, thereby informing management strategies. With this in mind, we aimed to quantify mass concentrations of microplastics in snow samples collected north-east of Iqaluktuuttiaq, Nunavut. We sampled five sites in a transect moving away from town and quantified microplastics using Pyrolysis/gas chromatography with mass spectrometry. We found microplastics at every location, but patterns along the transect were unclear. We observed differences in polymer types at sampling sites closer to the community compared to sites further away suggesting the presence of local inputs. Overall, we highlight the use of snow as a local monitoring tool to assess contamination and sources of microplastics in the Arctic to inform future long-term monitoring programs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-25T01:25:32Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-38c544e559e244d3922453dd34137f37 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2368-7460 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-25T01:25:32Z |
| publishDate | 2024-03-01 |
| publisher | Canadian Science Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Arctic Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-38c544e559e244d3922453dd34137f372024-03-08T21:35:53ZengCanadian Science PublishingArctic Science2368-74602024-03-0110.1139/AS-2023-0041The utility of monitoring snow for microplastics in the Arctic: A pilot study from Iqaluktuuttiaq, NunavutBonnie M. Hamilton0Les N. Harris1Jennifer F. Provencher2Chelsea M. Rochman3University of Toronto, 7938, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Toronto, Ontario, Canada;Fisheries and Oceans Canada Central and Arctic Region, 111145, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada;Environment and Climate Change Canada, 6347, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada;University of Toronto, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Toronto, Canada;Plastic pollution, including microplastics (<5 mm) has been identified as an emerging contaminant of Arctic concern and has been observed in wildlife, water, sediment, air, and snow. Because snow is relatively easy to sample and process for microplastics, it may be a useful compartment to monitor to assesspatterns of microplastic contamination in polar regions. Microplastics can enter the Arctic through both long-range transport pathways and from local sources. By sampling snow across spatial scales, and multiple distances from local communities, researchers can explore local and distant sources of microplastics, thereby informing management strategies. With this in mind, we aimed to quantify mass concentrations of microplastics in snow samples collected north-east of Iqaluktuuttiaq, Nunavut. We sampled five sites in a transect moving away from town and quantified microplastics using Pyrolysis/gas chromatography with mass spectrometry. We found microplastics at every location, but patterns along the transect were unclear. We observed differences in polymer types at sampling sites closer to the community compared to sites further away suggesting the presence of local inputs. Overall, we highlight the use of snow as a local monitoring tool to assess contamination and sources of microplastics in the Arctic to inform future long-term monitoring programs.https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/AS-2023-0041 |
| spellingShingle | Bonnie M. Hamilton Les N. Harris Jennifer F. Provencher Chelsea M. Rochman The utility of monitoring snow for microplastics in the Arctic: A pilot study from Iqaluktuuttiaq, Nunavut Arctic Science |
| title | The utility of monitoring snow for microplastics in the Arctic: A pilot study from Iqaluktuuttiaq, Nunavut |
| title_full | The utility of monitoring snow for microplastics in the Arctic: A pilot study from Iqaluktuuttiaq, Nunavut |
| title_fullStr | The utility of monitoring snow for microplastics in the Arctic: A pilot study from Iqaluktuuttiaq, Nunavut |
| title_full_unstemmed | The utility of monitoring snow for microplastics in the Arctic: A pilot study from Iqaluktuuttiaq, Nunavut |
| title_short | The utility of monitoring snow for microplastics in the Arctic: A pilot study from Iqaluktuuttiaq, Nunavut |
| title_sort | utility of monitoring snow for microplastics in the arctic a pilot study from iqaluktuuttiaq nunavut |
| url | https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/AS-2023-0041 |
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