Paint’s understudied role in microplastic pollution probed

Paint has been severely understudied in research on microplastics, according to a Toronto University, Canada, study.

Zoie Diana, the study co-author, is creating a spectral library – a technique to identify the molecular structure of unknown fragments.

The intention is to address the perceived gap in this understudied source of microplastic pollution, according to her team of University of Toronto researchers.

Microplastics, defined as plastic particles less than 5mm in size, are known to accumulate in air, water, food and even our bodies over time.

The researchers say paint has been severely underestimated as a microplastic pollutant because it can be difficult to identify.

They have surveyed existing literature to determine where paint pollution comes from, and found there were around 800 studies published on microplastics in 2019, but only 53 focused on paint.

Existing measures include special vacuums that can prevent paint emissions from leeching into the environment during building construction.

‘Often, paint will show up as ‘anthropogenic unknowns’ when characterising microplastics,’ says Diana.