Microplastics (MP) are ubiquitous in our environment and pose one of the biggest emerging threats to the global environmental community. Research on microplastics, their potential health effects, and their fate and transport remains relatively new and continues to evolve rapidly, with researchers publishing new studies at an accelerating rate. Even techniques and best practices for sample collection and analysis of these tiny particles and fibers are still very much evolving.
The Microplastics (MP-1, 2023) guidance document provides a comprehensive overview of microplastics for readers with a general scientific background, summarizing current knowledge without requiring review of the scientific literature. It covers microplastic sources, distribution, fate and transport, sampling and analysis methods, human and ecological health risks, regulatory considerations, and established and emerging management, treatment, and remediation approaches. The guidance also identifies key data gaps and research needs and includes supporting case studies and regulatory references.
As a companion to this guidance, the Microplastics Outreach Toolkit (MP-Toolkit, 2024) provides outreach materials, including fact sheets and presentations, to help communicate microplastics issues to a variety of audiences.
Topic(s): Contaminants of Emerging Concern, Microplastics
