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Are Microplastics Harmful?

 
Graphical illustration of potential impacts of microplastics in the environment.

Are microplastics harmful? The ecotoxicological assessment of microplastics in the environment is a complex task

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© Ecologic Institute 2022, CC-BY 4.0

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Are Microplastics Harmful?

The ecotoxicological assessment of microplastics in the environment is a complex task

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Ecologic Institute (2022): Plastics in the Environment. Are microplastics harmful? Infographic CC-BY 4.0. Online: https://bmbf-plastik.de/en/publication/are-microplastics-harmful

Whether or not microplastics have harmful effects on plants and animals has not yet been conclusively established. The different properties of microplastics determine whether and how the microplastics are absorbed by living organisms and whether they are harmful to them. Compared to other pollutants in the environment (e.g. pesticides), microplastics do not have a uniform effect on living organisms. In addition, the effects of microplastics often cannot be distinguished from the harmful effects of other particles and substances found in the environment.

You can download the infopgraphic as a poster (A2).

The infographic is licensed under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 license, i.e. it may be used and adapted if Ecologic Institute is named as the author.

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Concept: Melanie Kemper (Ecologic Institute)
Design: Lena Aebli (Ecologic Institute)
Content design: Katrin Wendt-Potthoff, Christian Laforsch, Sebastian Höss, Hannes Schritt (Ecologic Institute)

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Keywords
microplastics, food web, ecotoxicology, sublethal effects, toxicology, environmental sustainability