Microplastics intrude into the Tibetan Plateau

Microplastics have been widely found in the aquatic and terrestrial environments, such as in sea water, sea ice, lake/river water, and sediments. Glaciers also bring an important temporal component to microplastics studies, which can reveal atmospheric deposition in polar or high-altitude environments. However, microplastics accumulating in glaciers or being released from melting glaciers are still sparsely reported, particularly in the Tibetan Plateau (TP), which covers 5 million km² with an average elevation of >4,000 m a.s.l. (above sea level), and contains a large volume of glaciers in the mid-low latitude regions. Adjacent to human settlements in South Asia, East China, and central Asia, the TP is readily influenced by cross-border air pollution that can affect its vulnerable and pristine environments, among which the cryospheric environments, particularly glaciers, have been drawing increasing attention for their accelerated melting and relevant risks to regional water resources and quality. Recently, microplastics have been detected in glaciers and lake water at different locations on the TP, indicating that they can be transported to the TP. The findings are expected to be significant for narrowing knowledge gaps in connecting transport atmospheric pollutants and cryospheric changes over the TP, and for serving as a valuable and fundamental scientific basis for regional environmental protection and policy-making.