Closing the Plastic Budget Equation in Fluvial Systems: A Review of Monitoring Methods
Date
Authors
Todorova, A
Niven, RK
Kramer, M
Supervisor
Item type
Journal Article
Degree name
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Abstract
As plastic waste increasingly accumulates in aquatic environments, recent efforts have focused on quantifying the contribution of riverine sources to the ocean's plastic pollution. Accurate monitoring of fluvial plastics is challenging because plastics are transported and stored in different layers and compartments. Some processes, such as surface transport, can be measured relatively easily, while others, including bed load transport or storage in biota, remain difficult to assess. We start with a generalized formulation of the plastic budget equation, where we identify several transport and storage terms. Subsequently, we review common monitoring methods for plastics transported as surface load, suspended load, and bed load, as well as for plastics stored in sediments, floodplains, and fluvial biota. Overall, we hope to contribute to a better understanding and monitoring of fluvial plastic dynamics, with the aim to support the development of viable strategies regarding plastic pollution management and remediation.Description
Keywords
Direct sampling, Plastic budget equation, Plastic monitoring, Visual sampling, 41 Environmental Sciences, 4105 Pollution and Contamination, 14 Life Below Water, Environmental Sciences
Source
Science of the Total Environment, ISSN: 0048-9697 (Print); 1879-1026 (Online), Elsevier BV, 1024, 181604-. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2026.181604
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Rights statement
© 2026 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. Note: This article is available under the Creative Commons CC-BY-NC-ND license and permits non-commercial use of the work as published, without adaptation or alteration provided the work is fully attributed.