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Hydroclimatic and anthropogenic fingerprints drive the game between surface-water and sediment microplastics

Cao, Qing ; Huang, Xiao ; Jia, Benyou ; Liu, Kanglong ; Lall, Upmanu ; Yin, Jiabo ; Liu, Shuci ; Berndtsson, Ronny LU orcid ; Shao, Quanxi and Fan, Ziwu (2026) In Communications Earth and Environment 7(1).
Abstract

Microplastics are pervasive in inland waters, yet large-scale association patterns of abundance and traits remain unclear. Here we compiled a global lake database integrating surface-water and sediment observations with 56 hydroclimatic and anthropogenic indicators. Most hydroclimatic variables show positive associations with abundance in surface waters but act oppositely in sediments. Leading contribution patterns differ: leaf area index and 2-m dew-point temperature rank highest in surface waters, whereas solar radiation and wind speed lead in sediments. To enable finer-scale evaluation, we conducted dense sampling in China, which hosts one of the world’s largest and most intensively studied lake systems. Hydroclimatic and... (More)

Microplastics are pervasive in inland waters, yet large-scale association patterns of abundance and traits remain unclear. Here we compiled a global lake database integrating surface-water and sediment observations with 56 hydroclimatic and anthropogenic indicators. Most hydroclimatic variables show positive associations with abundance in surface waters but act oppositely in sediments. Leading contribution patterns differ: leaf area index and 2-m dew-point temperature rank highest in surface waters, whereas solar radiation and wind speed lead in sediments. To enable finer-scale evaluation, we conducted dense sampling in China, which hosts one of the world’s largest and most intensively studied lake systems. Hydroclimatic and anthropogenic fingerprints show clear cross-compartment contrasts: surface-water traits associate strongly with aquaculture production and rural income, while sediment traits more link to population aged 0–14 and chemical oxygen demand. Our findings imply a hydroclimate–human game across compartments, highlighting fingerprints structuring microplastic abundance and traits.

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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Communications Earth and Environment
volume
7
issue
1
article number
570
publisher
Springer Nature
external identifiers
  • scopus:105043748899
ISSN
2662-4435
DOI
10.1038/s43247-026-03559-z
project
The United Nations University Hub: Water in a Changing Environment (WICE)
language
English
LU publication?
yes
additional info
Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2026.
id
28765d7d-bd4a-4dcc-b3c2-4380449d4154
date added to LUP
2026-09-15 09:00:44
date last changed
2026-09-17 17:06:23
@article{28765d7d-bd4a-4dcc-b3c2-4380449d4154,
  abstract     = {{<p>Microplastics are pervasive in inland waters, yet large-scale association patterns of abundance and traits remain unclear. Here we compiled a global lake database integrating surface-water and sediment observations with 56 hydroclimatic and anthropogenic indicators. Most hydroclimatic variables show positive associations with abundance in surface waters but act oppositely in sediments. Leading contribution patterns differ: leaf area index and 2-m dew-point temperature rank highest in surface waters, whereas solar radiation and wind speed lead in sediments. To enable finer-scale evaluation, we conducted dense sampling in China, which hosts one of the world’s largest and most intensively studied lake systems. Hydroclimatic and anthropogenic fingerprints show clear cross-compartment contrasts: surface-water traits associate strongly with aquaculture production and rural income, while sediment traits more link to population aged 0–14 and chemical oxygen demand. Our findings imply a hydroclimate–human game across compartments, highlighting fingerprints structuring microplastic abundance and traits.</p>}},
  author       = {{Cao, Qing and Huang, Xiao and Jia, Benyou and Liu, Kanglong and Lall, Upmanu and Yin, Jiabo and Liu, Shuci and Berndtsson, Ronny and Shao, Quanxi and Fan, Ziwu}},
  issn         = {{2662-4435}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  publisher    = {{Springer Nature}},
  series       = {{Communications Earth and Environment}},
  title        = {{Hydroclimatic and anthropogenic fingerprints drive the game between surface-water and sediment microplastics}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s43247-026-03559-z}},
  doi          = {{10.1038/s43247-026-03559-z}},
  volume       = {{7}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}