Biofilm

Factsheet 7.1: Microplastics around dams - How do plastic particles behave in reservoirs?

Plastic is now ubiquitous not only in the sea but also in many inland waters. In certain areas, such as at barrages or in dams, the flow velocity decreases. As a result, the particles previously held in suspension by the current begin to sink to the bottom of the water and can then accumulate in the sediment.

PLAWES

Microplastic Contamination in the Weser- Wadden Sea – National Park Model System: an Ecosystem-Wide Approach
September 2017
April 2021

In PLAWES, the modelling system of the German national park Weser-Wadden Sea was the first large European river basin that was investigated in detail regarding its microplastic pollution.

Website
http://www.bayceer.uni-bayreuth.de/PLAWES/en/
Project sheet
18_Projektblatt_PLAWES_ENG_2018.pdf

MikroPlaTas

Microplastics in Dams and Reservoirs: Sedimentation, Spread, Effects
January 2018
September 2021

The spread of microplastics in rivers showed that along a given waterway there are sources as well as sinks. Thus, dams and reservoirs constitute important but until now hardly investigated parts of a water system that serve as examples for risk vs. usefulness of sedimentation of microplastics.

Website
https://www.uni-muenster.de/Mikroplatas/en/index.html
Project sheet
16_Projektblatt_MicroPlaTas_ENG_2018.pdf

SubμTrack

Tracking of (Sub)Microplastics of Different Identities - Innovative Analysis Tools for Toxicological and Process-engineering Evaluation
September 2017
June 2021

The methods currently available for the analysis of microplastics in environmental matrices were primarily designed for particles in the size range of 1 μm to 5 mm. Smaller particles below 1 μm were hardly detected. However in contrast to larger particles, these are able to enter cells and have a higher potential for adsorption of pollutants due to their relatively larger surface.

Website
https://www.wasser.tum.de/en/ submuetrack/startseite/
Project sheet
09_Projektblatt_SubµTrack_ENG_2018.pdf
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