Assessing the Occurrence of Microplastics in the Snake River

Assessing the Occurrence of

Microplastics in the Snake River

Ellen Yeatman and Kirsten Kapp

Department of Arts and Sciences Central Wyoming College, Jackson

What are microplastics?

Sizes

Size Terminology

> 20 centimeters Macroplastic

5 – 20 centimeters Mesoplastic

1 – 5 millimeters Large Microplastic

1 – 1000 micrometers Small Microplastic

< 1000 nanometers Nanoplastic

Sources

Up to 728,789 fibers per 6kg wash (Napper

et al, 2016)

NOAA definition (est. 2009) = plastic particles less than 5 millimeters in diameter.

Primary Source Resin pellets

Microbeads

Secondary Source Fragmentation of large litter = fragments, films

Microfibers

Both photos taken under microscope of fibers captured from laundry rinse water

Erika R. Holland, Mark L. Mallory & Dave Shutler. Plastics and other anthropogenic

debris in freshwater birds from Canada.

Science Direct May 2016 (571): 251-258.

Environmental and Public Health Impacts

• Physical Blockage • False Satiation

• Endocrine disruption • Trophic Level Transfer

 Leaching of additives into organisms tissue

 Vector for hydrophobic pathogens and contaminants

Atlantic Herring gut, Gulf of Maine Photo Credit: Kirsten Kapp

Snail ‘hitch hiking’ on plastic fragment. Photo by Kirsten Kapp

Cole et al. 2013. Microplastic ingestion by zooplankton. Environ. Sci. Technol.

Sampling Methods

Two types of samples collected per site (every 50

river miles)

– Grab samples (~ 1.8 Liters)

– Volume reduced net samples ( ~ 3,328 Liters)

Lab Methods

Grab Samples

Vacuum filtration (0.45um pore size)

Microscope inspection (Nikon SMZ800N)

Net Samples

Stainless steel Sieve (100µm) and oven dry

Wet Peroxide Oxidation

NaCl followed by NaI Density Separation Vacuum filtration followed by microscope

inspection

Raman Spectrometry and FTIR

Visual Inspection

Standards used for microplastic identification (15x - 120x):

1. No cellular or organic structures are visible

2. Fibers should be equally thick, not tapered at the end

3. Fibers are not segmented nor do they appear as twisted, flat ribbons

4. Particles should not be shiny 5. Particles are bendable,

“squishy” or soft 6. Unnatural color

Nikon SMZ800N with Infinity 1 Lumenera Camera

Results

Raman

Spectroscopy

Burley, Idaho

Length =

253um

Width = 68um

More Ramen Noodles

Lyon’s Ferry,

Washington

Length = 232um

Future Direction

• Complete microscope inspection of net samples

• Complete Raman microscope analysis for validation of MPs identified in grab and net samples

• Identifying the source of microplastic contamination in hot spots

• Gather more water samples!

• Vertical and horizontal water column transects • Sediment samples

• Sampling year round to account for variation in flow

• Partner with other scientists and institutions throughout the Snake River drainage to make this important study happen!

Solutions

Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015

This bill, passed on December 28, 2015, amends the Federal Food, Drug, and

Cosmetic Act to ban rinse-off cosmetics that contain intentionally-added plastic

microbeads beginning on January 1, 2018, and to ban manufacturing of these cosmetics beginning on July 1, 2017. These bans are delayed by one year for cosmetics that are over-the-counter drugs.

“Waves for

days, plastic

for eternity!”

captured this photo in Indonesia in 2013. www.nydailynews.com

Kirsten Kapp

Central Wyoming College Wyoming INBRE

Teton Conservation District Idaho State University Metrohm Raman in Laramie

This project was supported by an Institutional Development Award (IDeA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National

Institutes of Health under Grant #2P20GM103432.

The contents of this presentation are solely the responsibility of the presenter and do not necessarily represent the official views of NIH.