Dataset Information

Occurrence, distribution, and characteristics of microplastics in agricultural soil around a solid waste treatment center in southeast China.

ABSTRACT:

Purpose

In recent years, microplastic (MP) contamination has raised enormous concern. However, data on the influence of solid waste treatment systems on MP pollution around agricultural soil are lacking. This study investigated the distribution and characteristics of MPs in agricultural soil surrounding a solid waste treatment center in southeastern China.

Materials and methods

Fifty-seven agricultural topsoil samples around the solid waste treatment center were collected. The samples were pretreated by drying, flotation separation using NaCl solution, and digestion by H₂O₂. The abundance and morphological characteristics of MPs were determined by a microscope, followed by Raman spectroscopy analysis identified polymer types and SEM-EDS analysis observed surface morphology and the type of metals accumulated on the MPs.

Results and discussion

Soil MPs' abundance ranged from 280 to 2360 items/kg, while a higher abundance of MPs was distributed in the downwind area. The < 1-mm MPs were dominant, and white fragment MPs were widely found. Polyethylene (52.86%) and polypropylene (27.14%) were the most common. Moreover, SEM-EDS images illustrated that MPs were significantly weathered and showed the uneven distribution of metal(loid) elements on the surface, implying that MPs may migrate as heavy metal vectors to threaten agroecosystem safety.

Conclusions

This study reveals the distribution and characteristics of MPs in agricultural soil surrounding a solid waste treatment center in southeastern China, as well as the potential source of soil MPs, and provides systematic data for further research on MP pollution in agricultural soil.

Supplementary information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11368-022-03341-6.

SUBMITTER: Liu X

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9518945 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Occurrence, distribution, and characteristics of microplastics in agricultural soil around a solid waste treatment center in southeast China.

Liu Xi X Lin Huirong H Xu Sheng S Yan Yu Y Yu Ruilian R Hu Gongren G

Journal of soils and sediments 20220928 2

<h4>Purpose</h4>In recent years, microplastic (MP) contamination has raised enormous concern. However, data on the influence of solid waste treatment systems on MP pollution around agricultural soil are lacking. This study investigated the distribution and characteristics of MPs in agricultural soil surrounding a solid waste treatment center in southeastern China.<h4>Materials and methods</h4>Fifty-seven agricultural topsoil samples around the solid waste treatment center were collected. The sam ...[more]

PMID: 36193337

Similar Datasets

Project description:Agricultural waste (AW) presents significant environmental challenges if not effectively managed. Recycling AW as bio-organic fertilizers (BIOs) offers a sustainable solution, improving soil health, reducing dependence on chemical fertilizers, and stimulating crop growth. This study investigated the effectiveness of BIOs generated from AW composted with plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), including Enterobacter sp. R24, Bacillus tequilensis P8, and Pseudomonas azotoformans S81. BIOs produced from peanut shell, rice straw, duckweed, and rice bran were applied to rice seedlings under normal and saline (85 mM NaCl) conditions. The results revealed that PGPR-fermented BIOs utilized for only 15-30 days significantly improved seed germination and root length. BIO-duckweed and BIO-peanut proved high in nitrogen, phosphate, and potassium content, thereby increasing total biomass by 188% and 85%, respectively. In non-saline soil, BIO-peanut shell outperformed chemical fertilizers, promoting root growth and chlorophyll content. Additionally, BIO-rice straw gave a 58% reduction in proline levels under saline conditions, indicating stress reduction capacity. BIOs treatments demonstrated significant improvements in both nutrient availability and microbial diversity. Specifically, BIO-peanut shell and BIO-duckweed increased phosphate availability in soil by 143.26%, 13.80% over control soil and 7.23%, 30.69% over chemical treatment, respectively. The denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis further revealed a noticeable increase in microbial diversity in soils treated with BIOs, which was absent in untreated soil. Indeed, BIO-rice straw promoted the development of five distinct bacterial genera in saline condition, underscoring BIOs' ability to enhance the microbial community structure. The study highlights the potential of BIOs from AW combined with PGPRs to enhance rice growth under extreme salt stress. This sustainable alternative to chemical fertilizers enhances soil health by increasing nutrient availability, microbial diversity, and promoting beneficial soil microbes, ultimately improving long-term soil resilience and fertility.

Project description:Biological and thermochemical sanitization of source-separated human solid waste (HSW) are effective technologies for unsewered communities. While both methods are capable of fecal pathogen sterilization, the agronomically-beneficial properties of waste sanitized between methods remains unclear. Therefore, this study compared recovery and quality of soil amendments produced by compostation, torrefaction, and pyrolysis of HSW, established their financial value, and quantified tradeoffs between product value and conversion efficiency. Temperature and associated mass losses significantly affected the physical and chemical properties of thermochemically-treated HSW. Thermophilic composting, a biological sanitation method practiced in informal settlements in Nairobi, Kenya, produced an amendment that contained between 16 and 858-fold more plant-available nitrogen (N; 214.5 mg N/kg) than HSW pyrolyzed between 300 and 700 °C (0.2-15.2 mg N/kg). Conversely, HSW pyrolyzed at 600 °C had four-fold higher plant-available phosphorus (P; 3117 mg P/kg) and five-fold higher plant-available potassium (K; 7403 mg K/kg) than composted HSW (716 mg P/kg and 1462 mg K/kg). Wide variation between international fertilizer prices on the low end and regional East African prices on the high end resulted in broad-spaced quantiles for the value of agronomic components in HSW amendments. Phosphorus and K comprised a disproportionate amount of the value, 52-87%, compared to plant-available N, which contributed less than 2%. The total value of treated HSW, summed across all agronomic components per unit weight amendment, was greatest for thermochemically-treated HSW at 600 °C, averaging 220 USD/Mg, more than four-fold that of composted HSW, 53 USD/Mg. In contrast, torrefaction provided the highest monetary value per unit weight feedstock, 144 USD/Mg, as low heating temperatures engender minimal mass loss and higher nutrient densities per unit weight feedstock, compared to composted or pyrolyzed HSW. When benchmarked against total N, P, and K of eight commonly-applied organic amendments, including sewage-sludge (Milorganite), compost, and alfalfa meal, HSW pyrolyzed at 700 °C was of greatest value per unit weight of amendment, 365 USD/Mg, compared to 89 USD/Mg for composted HSW, and contained 2.9% total N (0.5 mg available N/kg), 3.1% total P (7640 mg available P/kg), 3.5% total K (17,671 mg available K/kg).

Project description:Bacterial secondary metabolites serve as an important source of molecules for drug discovery. They also play an important function in mediating the interactions of microbial producers with their living environment and surrounding organisms. However, little is known about the genetic novelty, distribution, and community-level impacts of soil bacterial biosynthetic potential on a large geographic scale. Here, we constructed the first catalog of 11,149 biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) from agricultural soils across China and unearthed hidden biosynthetic potential for new natural product discovery from the not-yet-cultivated soil bacteria. Notably, we revealed soil pH as the strongest environmental driver of BGC biogeography and predicted that soil acidification and global climate change could damage the biosynthetic potential of the soil microbiome. The co-occurrence network of bacterial genomes revealed two BGC-rich species, i.e., Nocardia niigatensis from Actinobacteriota and PSRF01 from Acidobacteriota, as the module hub and connector, respectively, indicating their keystone positions in the soil microbial communities. We also uncovered a dominant role of BGC-inferred biotic interactions over environmental drivers in structuring the soil microbiome. Overall, this study achieved novel insights into the BGC landscape in agricultural soils of China, substantially expanding our understanding of the diversity and novelty of bacterial secondary metabolism and the potential role of secondary metabolites in microbiota assembly.IMPORTANCEBacterial secondary metabolites not only serve as the foundation for numerous therapeutics (e.g., antibiotics and anticancer drugs), but they also play critical ecological roles in mediating microbial interactions (e.g., competition and communication). However, our knowledge of bacterial secondary metabolism is limited to only a small fraction of cultured strains, thus restricting our comprehensive understanding of their diversity, novelty, and potential ecological roles in soil ecosystems. Here, we used culture-independent metagenomics to explore biosynthetic potentials in agricultural soils of China. Our analyses revealed a high degree of genetic diversity and novelty within biosynthetic gene clusters in agricultural soil environments, offering valuable insights for biochemists seeking to synthesize novel bioactive products. Furthermore, we uncovered the pivotal role of BGC-rich species in microbial communities and the significant relationship between BGC richness and microbial phylogenetic turnover. This information emphasizes the importance of biosynthetic potential in the assembly of microbial communities.

Dataset Information

Occurrence, distribution, and characteristics of microplastics in agricultural soil around a solid waste treatment center in southeast China.

Purpose

Materials and methods

Results and discussion

Conclusions

Supplementary information

Publications

Occurrence, distribution, and characteristics of microplastics in agricultural soil around a solid waste treatment center in southeast China.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets