Beneficial Use of Residuals to Improve Soil Health and Protect Public and Ecosystem Health

Microplastics (MPs) are widely distributed in all environmental media including soil and water due to the large amount of plastics produced and used, and low percentage recycled. MPs are even present in drinks and foods, and human blood. Recent studies indicate that these particles can be toxic to various organisms such as plant, bacteria, algae and other forms of life, depending on dose, size and shape. Therefore, it is important to study the distribution and occurrence of MPs and their environmental processes, fate and toxicity. In addition, reliable methods need to be developed for such studies. The goal of this work is to develop methods for sampling, collection, detection, and analysis for MPs. Then, the environmental processes, fate and toxicity of MPs will be determined. We will also develop treatments for reducing the release of MPs from wastewater to the environment and investigate the possibility of biochar to reduce the mobility of MPs and their availability to organisms. Both lab and greenhouse experiments will be conducted using various soil, waters, crop, contaminants, MPs, and biochars.