Author
Melanie Bläsing
Bio: Melanie Bläsing is an academic researcher from University of Bonn. The author has contributed to research in topics: Soil water & Inland navigation. The author has an hindex of 6, co-authored 8 publications receiving 643 citations.
Papers
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TL;DR: Current knowledge on available methods for the quantification and identification of plastic in soil, the quantity and possible input pathways of plastic into soil, and its fate in soil are reviewed are reviewed to ensure the applicability of these methods for soil needs to be tested.
842 citations
TL;DR: It is shown that household level pesticide management remains suboptimal in the Mekong Delta and co-occurrence of several pesticides in the samples indicate a considerable chronic exposure of biota and humans to pesticides.
192 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a considerable proportion of black carbon (BC) may be produced during sample treatment in the presence of a high amount of organic carbon (OC), and the results showed that small amounts of BC-free material from stems of Zea mays L. (maize straw) and leaves of Capsicum annuum L (bell pepper), as well as cyclic and non-cyclic carbon forms (chlorophyllin, ellagic acid and β-carotene) afford BPCAs when method protocols are overloaded with a sample above the recommended amount of
65 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors characterized and compared patterns of metals, and parent-, thio-and alkylated PAHs in gaseous and particulate emissions from inland navigation vessels (INVs) with those of road traffic, domestic heating (solid fuels) and ocean going vessels (OGVs) using data from this study and the literature.
12 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the applicability of biomarkers (leave-derived n-alkanes, their stable carbon isotope composition, and C and N stable isotopes of soil organic matter) in loess-derived soils to identify and differentiate past ecosystems, and elucidating the variability of these biomarkers in palaeosols.
10 citations
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TL;DR: Current knowledge on available methods for the quantification and identification of plastic in soil, the quantity and possible input pathways of plastic into soil, and its fate in soil are reviewed are reviewed to ensure the applicability of these methods for soil needs to be tested.
842 citations
TL;DR: If extended to other soils and plastic types, the processes unravelled here suggest that microplastics are relevant long-term anthropogenic stressors and drivers of global change in terrestrial ecosystems.
Abstract: Soils are essential components of terrestrial ecosystems that experience strong pollution pressure. Microplastic contamination of soils is being increasingly documented, with potential consequences for soil biodiversity and function. Notwithstanding, data on effects of such contaminants on fundamental properties potentially impacting soil biota are lacking. The present study explores the potential of microplastics to disturb vital relationships between soil and water, as well as its consequences for soil structure and microbial function. During a 5-weeks garden experiment we exposed a loamy sand soil to environmentally relevant nominal concentrations (up to 2%) of four common microplastic types (polyacrylic fibers, polyamide beads, polyester fibers, and polyethylene fragments). Then, we measured bulk density, water holding capacity, hydraulic conductivity, soil aggregation, and microbial activity. Microplastics affected the bulk density, water holding capacity, and the functional relationship between the microbial activity and water stable aggregates. The effects are underestimated if idiosyncrasies of particle type and concentrations are neglected, suggesting that purely qualitative environmental microplastic data might be of limited value for the assessment of effects in soil. If extended to other soils and plastic types, the processes unravelled here suggest that microplastics are relevant long-term anthropogenic stressors and drivers of global change in terrestrial ecosystems.
791 citations
TL;DR: The wide distribution of MPs, their presence in remote unsettled high mountain areas, decoupling of MEP and MP compositions, and the dominance of MPs by small (<500 μm diameter) particles, indicate that MPs enter soils via diffuse aeolian transport.
Abstract: Microplastics (MPs) are small (<5 mm diameter) but have clear implications for the environment. These artificial particles are found in and pose threats to aquatic systems worldwide. MPs have terrestrial sources, but their concentrations and fates in the terrestrial environment are poorly understood. While global plastic production continues to increase, so do the environmental concentrations and impacts of MPs. In this first study of MPs in floodplain soils, we developed a method for identifying, quantifying, and measuring the sizes of most commonly produced MPs in soil by FT-IR microscopy. For small MP (<1 mm) analysis, MP were separated by density separation and oxidation of organic matter. In this study we analyzed 29 floodplains in Swiss nature reserves associated with catchments covering 53% of Switzerland. We found evidence that 90% of Swiss floodplain soils contain MPs. The highest MP concentrations were associated with the concentration of mesoplastics (5 mm − 2.5 cm diameter), indicating plastic...
711 citations
TL;DR: It is found that topsoil contained higher concentrations and larger sizes of micro(meso)plastics than deep soil, and the vast majority of microplastics were polypropylene and polyethylene.
685 citations
TL;DR: The results indicate that microplastic counts increase over time where successive sludge applications are performed, and stress the relevance of sludge as a driver of soil microplastics contamination.
667 citations