Researchers at Lund University have made a startling discovery – nanoplastics are wreaking havoc on aquatic ecosystems, wiping out crucial species while allowing others to thrive unchecked. This hidden danger poses a grave threat to the delicate balance of our waterways.
The Invisible Invaders
Each year we are throwing away between 5-13 million tons (depending on which reports you read) of plastics into the ocean. In the fullness this fashion plastic particles become micro- and nanoparticle sizes that are for all practical purposes invisible to the naked eye.
Lund University in Sweden researchers are looking into the potential consequences of these mini bits of plastic on aquatic environments. The results are alarming and startling, to say the least. It did, however, also reveal that while some species are being hit hard (e.g. the key grazer zooplankton as well as grazing and phytoplankton diatoms), others (cyanobacteria) remain completely unharmed.
The finding that not all organisms will respond in the same way to nanoplastics is worrying. ‘As Lars-Anders Hansson, professor of aquatic ecology, puts it: “We don’t know why some collapse while others continue as usual. However, ‘if the concentrations of nanoplastics rise, those in the present who can resist a few particles will be afflicted too.
A Ripple Effect Through the Food Chain
The study took place in artificial wetlands, analogous to natural ecosystems. The result is likely to be generalizable to clinical encounters.
Moreover, the effects of nanoplastics on different organisms have high importance due implications in the food chains and ecosystem processes. If zooplankton grazers, a key fish food source, are being removed and diatoms have a harder time proliferating then this is quite serious.
At the same time, blue-green algae species that are not susceptible to OA continue to grow and will provoke larger algal blooms. This disruption in the natural balance may lead to repercussions which can change the dynamics of entire aqua ecosystem.
Variations in the effect on different organisms cause drastic changes at both higher and lower levels of the food chain and ecosystem function, resulting in less grazing zooplankton and more extensive algal blooms as Hansson explains.
Conclusion
A study from Lund University has now shown that the presence and spread of tiny plastic particles in water may be a great deal even referred to as a shocking experiment with The aquatic environment is far greater than previously believed. As some species are wiped out, others run rampant, and the entire fragile ecosystem of these areas goes haywire. Until very recently– those particles remained invisible to the naked eye, but as their concentrations continue to climb, so too does the danger they present to our waterways and the life that relies on them. The study is a stark reminder of the emergency we face in dealing with the global plastic disaster and its devastating impacts on wildlife.
