Direct Evidence That Microplastics Are Transported to the Deep Sea by Turbidity Currents.

ABSTRACT: Microplastics pervade the global seafloor, yet the mechanisms by which this pollutant is increasingly transported to the deep sea remain unclear. Fast-moving sediment avalanches (called turbidity currents) are hypothesized to efficiently transport microplastics into the deep sea. However, while this has been inferred from field sampling of the seafloor, it has never been demonstrated outside of a laboratory setting. Here, we provide direct field-scale evidence that turbidity currents in submarine canyons not only transport globally significant volumes of mineral and organic matter into the deep sea but also carry large quantities of anthropogenic particles, including microfibers and microplastic fragments. In situ hydrodynamic monitoring, coupled with direct sampling of the seafloor and ma

SUBMITTER: Chen P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12004917 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature