Microplastics Fingerprinting research project releases impact report

The Microplastics Fingerprinting research project has released its impact report, showcasing significant scientific advancements and societal contributions since the group’s launch, including ERG’s predictive work on how microplastics move through the environment.

About the Microplastics Fingerprinting Research Project

The Microplastics Fingerprinting at the watershed scale: from sources to receivers project has sought to better understand the sources, transport pathways, and the environmental fate and impact of microplastics at a watershed scale. The project analyzed the reactivity and breakdown of microplastics in river systems and reservoirs, quantified the loads of microplastics delivered to the Grand River watershed, optimized microplastics elimination in wastewater treatment plants, and determined the abundance and diversity of microplastics in drinking water sources.

As part of this project, ERG researchers examined how microplastics move through urban stormwater systems, focusing on stormwater management ponds across five catchments in Kitchener, Ontario. They combined long-term field sampling with hydrological modelling and sediment surveys to quantify microplastic inputs, retention in sediments, and downstream release. The team also analyzed data from 107 stormwater catchments worldwide using machine-learning models, confirming that hydrology, watershed characteristics, and human activities are key drivers of microplastic loads.

This project was supported by the NSERC Alliance Grant competition on plastics science for a cleaner future. The project will contribute to Canada’s Plastics Science Agenda (CaPSA).