Microplastic Contamination in Urban, Farmland and Desert Environments along a Highway in Southern Xinjiang, China

Li, Wenfeng; Wang, Shuzhi; Wufuer, Rehemanjiang; Duo, Jia; Pan, Xiangliang

doi:10.3390/ijerph19158890

Cited by 15 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 55 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…However, relatively shorter deployment could limit microplastic effects into the environment. Nonetheless, as plastic structures were utilized by vertebrate species, there is a possibility for smaller plastic portions to become present within the food chain (Li et al 2022). Future studies could focus on utilizing biodegradable material that similarly mimic the benefits of foundational shrub species, such as burlap or cotton canvas (Kuhns 1997; Ghazian et al 2020, 2024).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The relative effects of artificial shrubs on animal community assembly

Zuliani,

Ghazian,

MacDonald

et al. 2024

Restoration Ecology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Facilitative associations between the foundational shrub species Ephedra californica and local vertebrate species can drive positive interactions within desert ecosystems that influence diversity and assembly processes. These foundational shrubs can contribute to the structural heterogeneity of ecosystems for plants and animals including variation in temperature profiles, refuge from predation, and habitat for foraging. Artificial structures can also influence fine‐scale ecological and micro‐environmental dynamics. We tested the hypothesis that artificial shrubs (mimics) positively influence desert vertebrate association through facilitative interactions, similar to foundational shrub species. Mimics were deployed at four distinct sites within the central deserts of Southern California. A combination of camera traps and temperature pendants were utilized to measure the association patterns of vertebrate species and the microclimatic variation at mimic, open, and shrubs. A total of 21 species were observed in this study. Mimics had a significantly higher vertebrate abundance and richness than open microsites and functioned similarly to shrubs. These findings suggest that mimics can be utilized as a stop‐gap replacement for foundational shrub species as they can act as a novel fine‐scale habitat for many desert vertebrate species.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The relative effects of artificial shrubs on animal community assembly

Zuliani,

Ghazian,

MacDonald

et al. 2024

Restoration Ecology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Plastics have been found in unbelievable places, like deserts and inhabitable places (The Guardian, 2017; Li et al, 2022;Akanyange et al, 2022). Over 20% of waste found its way to landfills due to difficulty in sorting and separating these plastics from the main waste stream and separation from other materials during recycling.…”

Section: Land Pollutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of Plastic Waste Management on the Environment: A review

Abimbola,

Adejumobi,

Aribisala

et al. 2024

ETSJ

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Plastics have become a modern-day nuisance to the environment and man due to improper management at their end-of-life. The structure and additives in fossil-based plastics make them non-biodegradable and, therefore, can persist in the environment for hundreds of years. Since a small percentage of plastic waste is recycled annually (9%) most of this plastic waste is being managed by open-air incineration or disposal in landfills where these additives can easily contaminate the air, soil, and water apart from the fact that a lot of these plastic waste find their way into our water bodies resulting to a lot of harm to the Eco-system. Recycling of plastic is an effective means of tackling the menace of plastic pollution, with chemical recycling as the most effective recycling process as it completely removes the waste plastic from the environment. Manufacturing and use of bioplastics like Polylactic acid, a good substitute for fossil-based polymer polyethylene terephthalate (PET), is a welcome development with the People’s Republic of China championing in the production. Legislative tools have been enacted in countries across the globe banning the use and manufacturing of single-use plastic bags. The implementation of this legislative move has been effective in some countries like the People’s Republic of China, Morocco, and Rwanda. Nigeria enacted the Plastic prohibition bill banning the manufacturing, use, and importation of all plastic bags in May 2019. This ban does not affect the behavioral and plastic management system in Nigeria as plastic bags are still used in cities across the country, littered in waterways and landfills. Therefore, there is a need to review the bill to include waste generation and management. Emphasis should also be placed on the production, and use of cost-effective bioplastic polymers and products

show abstract

“…Human activities have a significant impact on the climate and environment in southern Xinjiang, China [33]. Human activities in southern Xinjiang are mainly concentrated in oases, which are agricultural planting.…”

Section: Changes Of Human Activities On Environmental Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Human Activities on Evapotranspiration and Its Components in Arid Areas

Liu

GUI

Yin

et al. 2023

IJERPH

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

With the increasing impact of human activities on the environment, evapotranspiration (ET) has changed in arid areas, which further affects the water resources availability in the region. Therefore, understanding the impact of human activities on ET and its components is helpful to the management of water resources in arid areas. This study verified the accuracy of Fisher’s model (PT-JPL model) for ET estimation in southern Xinjiang, China by using the evaporation complementarity theory dataset (AET dataset). The ET and the evapotranspiration components (T:E) of six land-use types were estimated in southern Xinjiang from 1982 to 2015, and the impact of human activities on ET was analyzed. In addition, the impact of four environmental factors (temperature (Temp), net radiation (Rn), relative humidity (RH), and NDVI) on ET were evaluated. The results showed that the calculated ET values of the PT-JPL model were close to the ET values of the AET dataset. The correlation coefficient (R2) was more than 0.8, and the NSE was close to 1. In grassland, water area, urban industrial and mining land, forest land, and cultivated land, the ET values were high, and in unused land types, the ET values were the lowest. The T:E values varied greatly in urban industrial and mining land, forest land, and cultivated land, which was due to the intensification of human activities, and the values were close to 1 in summer in recent years. Among the four environmental factors, temperature largely influenced the monthly ET. These findings suggest that human activities have significantly reduced soil evaporation and improved water use efficiency. The impact of human activities on environmental factors has caused changes in ET and its components, and appropriate oasis expansion is more conducive to regional sustainable development.

show abstract

Microplastic Contamination in Urban, Farmland and Desert Environments along a Highway in Southern Xinjiang, China

Cited by 15 publications

References 55 publications

The relative effects of artificial shrubs on animal community assembly

The relative effects of artificial shrubs on animal community assembly

Influence of Plastic Waste Management on the Environment: A review

Effects of Human Activities on Evapotranspiration and Its Components in Arid Areas

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About