8 Recent Advances in PFAS and Emerging Contaminant Science: From Human Health Risk Assessment to Fate and Transport (Posters)

Sunday, 17 March 2024
9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Armory Ballroom

FROM SOURCE TO TAP: MICROPLASTICS IN A SUB-WATERSHED OF THE HUDSON RIVER ESTUARY

Paper number: 8-3
Program: Theme Sessions
Time: 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM

Authors

Abstract

Oceans are a major sink for microplastics, with plastic accounting for the majority of total marine pollution. The Hudson River contributes ~ 300 million microplastic fibers to the Atlantic Ocean per day, and some samples in the lower Hudson have been found to have over 6,000 pieces of microplastics. Plastic pollution enters the Hudson River via stormwater runoff, wind, and atmospheric deposition, treated wastewater discharge and stormwater. Troy, NY is the uppermost town of the Hudson River estuary, 153 miles north of New York Harbor. Tap waters from Troy, NY show an abundance of microplastic fibers in the water, with an average of 156 microplastic particles/L suggesting that water treatment is not removing microplastics. Most wastewater treatment plants in NY are not equipped to filter out small particles, so microplastics in household waters are ultimately making their way into the Hudson River via outflow and combined sewer overflow.

The Tomhannock Reservoir in Pittstown, NY is the drinking water source for Troy, NY. Three streams supply water to the reservoir and developed land in each is < 10% area. In the summer of 2023, water sample were collected from 3 the tributaries, reservoir, and taps throughout Troy. Both grab samples and net sampling methodologies were deployed at different flow conditions to assess methodological differences as well as spatial variation. All samples contained microplastics and concentrations varied considerably from location-to-location and over the summer. On June 14th, Otter Creek had 668 microplastic particles identified in 1 L, whereas on July 26th, only 12 microplastic particles were identified. Significant variation was observed between samples of different volumes; concentrations ranged from 153 particles/L to 668 particles/L for 5 L and 1 L volumes respectively. For both dates, there was no precipitation in the previous 24 hours, however velocity was greater on July 26th. This work demonstrates the highly variable nature of microplastic pollution in a small watershed of the Hudson River estuary. Further work is ongoing to identify plastic polymers in surface and drinking waters, and to test effectiveness of microplastic removal from tap waters using commercially available filters.

Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. Vol. 56, No. 1

doi: 10.1130/abs/2024NE-397759

© Copyright 2024 The Geological Society of America (GSA), all rights reserved. Permission is hereby granted to the author(s) of this abstract to reproduce and distribute it freely, for noncommercial purposes. Permission is hereby granted to any individual scientist to download a single copy of this electronic file and reproduce up to 20 paper copies for noncommercial purposes advancing science and education, including classroom use, providing all reproductions include the complete content shown here, including the author information. All other forms of reproduction and/or transmittal are prohibited without written permission from GSA Copyright Permissions.