Grant: Alliance Grants
University of Waterloo
$435,000.00
Microplastics fingerprinting at the watershed scale: from sources to receivers
FY 2022-23
Summary
Plastics pollution is a global and growing environmental hazard with potentially far-reaching consequences for food webs, biodiversity, ecosystem services and human well-being. Of particular concern are microplastics because their small sizes enhance their long-range transport, toxicity to biota, and capacity to sorb and leach contaminants, including organic pollutants and toxic metals. We propose to implement a holistic data acquisition and modeling strategy that will link the sources, transport, fate and exposure risks of microplastics at the scale of entire watersheds. In addition to established spectroscopic and imaging techniques, we will explore novel biosensors and microwave sensing for the rapid screening and typing of microplastics in environmental samples. We will improve the processing of large analytical datasets on microplastics assemblages and develop standardized workflows for the sampling, sample preparation, screening, analysis, data processing and data management of microplastics. These workflows will be applied to characterize the entry pathways to, and transport along, the river network, identify (bio)degradation proxies, quantify accumulation in reservoirs and on riverbanks, and estimate the export of microplastics to receiving lakes. Past microplastics pollution will be reconstructed from dated sediment cores while the analysis of microplastics loading and transport rates under variable hydrometeorological conditions will help forecast the impacts of more extreme precipitation events in the future. Our growing database will be integrated into a mass balance modeling platform that will enable extensive scenario testing, including the response of microplastics emissions and loadings to hypothetical source reduction measures. The scenario results, together with cost-benefit analyses and knowledge exchanges with stakeholders, will contribute to identifying policy instruments and governance approaches that can effectively protect freshwater ecosystems and drinking water sources from microplastics pollution.
Program
Alliance Grants
Recipient
Location
Ontario, Canada
Recipient Type
Academia
Type
Grant
Source
NSERC's Awards Data
As published
Application id
558435-2020
Name nom
Van Cappellen, Philippe PSJ
Department département
Earth & Environmental Sciences
Organization id
33
Institution établissement
University of Waterloo
Province en
Ontario
Province fr
Ontario
Country en
CANADA
Country fr
CANADA
Fiscal year exercice financier
2022
Competition year année de concours
2020
Award amount
435000
Program id
ALLRP
Program name en
Alliance Grants
Program name fr
Subventions Alliance
Group en
RESEARCH PARTNERSHIPS
Group fr
PARTENARIATS DE RECHERCHE
Committee code
96
Committee name en
RPP Internal Decision Cttee
Committee name fr
Cté de décision interne - PPR
Area of application code
406
Area of application group en
Environment
Area of application group fr
Environnement
Area of application en
Pollutants and toxic agents (waste, use 902)
Area of application fr
Polluants et agents toxiques (déchets, utiliser 902)
Research subject code
4501
Research subject group en
Hydrology
Research subject group fr
Hydrologie
Research subject en
Hydrogeochemistry
Research subject fr
Hydrogéochimie
Installment
inst:3;4
Partie
2
Nb partie
4
Application title
Microplastics fingerprinting at the watershed scale: from sources to receivers
Application summary
Plastics pollution is a global and growing environmental hazard with potentially far-reaching consequences for food webs, biodiversity, ecosystem services and human well-being. Of particular concern are microplastics because their small sizes enhance their long-range transport, toxicity to biota, and capacity to sorb and leach contaminants, including organic pollutants and toxic metals. We propose to implement a holistic data acquisition and modeling strategy that will link the sources, transport, fate and exposure risks of microplastics at the scale of entire watersheds. In addition to established spectroscopic and imaging techniques, we will explore novel biosensors and microwave sensing for the rapid screening and typing of microplastics in environmental samples. We will improve the processing of large analytical datasets on microplastics assemblages and develop standardized workflows for the sampling, sample preparation, screening, analysis, data processing and data management of microplastics. These workflows will be applied to characterize the entry pathways to, and transport along, the river network, identify (bio)degradation proxies, quantify accumulation in reservoirs and on riverbanks, and estimate the export of microplastics to receiving lakes. Past microplastics pollution will be reconstructed from dated sediment cores while the analysis of microplastics loading and transport rates under variable hydrometeorological conditions will help forecast the impacts of more extreme precipitation events in the future. Our growing database will be integrated into a mass balance modeling platform that will enable extensive scenario testing, including the response of microplastics emissions and loadings to hypothetical source reduction measures. The scenario results, together with cost-benefit analyses and knowledge exchanges with stakeholders, will contribute to identifying policy instruments and governance approaches that can effectively protect freshwater ecosystems and drinking water sources from microplastics pollution.
