Nowhere along the Delaware River watershed is free from plastic pollution, according to a new report from the PennEnvironment Research and Policy Center.
Researchers found microplastics — fragments and fibers smaller than a grain of rice — in all samples they pulled from the river and its tributaries, stretching from upstate New York to Cape May.
Microplastics threaten wildlife and have been found in humans. More research is necessary to determine the extent of potential health effects, but plastic chemicals “can cause endocrine disruption, hormonal effects, and reproductive disorders,” PennEnvironment says in its analysis. Trace amounts of plastic can also bind and carry other dangerous toxins, including PFAS, also known as “forever chemicals.”
“The results of this study should set off alarms for all Pennsylvanians who love the Delaware River and want to protect and restore it," Faran Savitz, the organization’s zero waste advocate, said in a statement. “Microplastics throughout the watershed make it clear we can no longer ignore the increasingly common specter of plastic pollution.”
PennEnvironment tested water for four types of microplastics — fibers (mostly from clothing), fragments (from hard plastic and raw material); film (from plastic bags and packaging) and beads (from cosmetic products).
Fibers were detected in 100% of the samples, and 82% and 77% tested positive for fragments and films, respectively. All three were found in samples from the Delaware River in Philadelphia, Bucks County’s Neshaminy Creek and Chester County’s Brandywine Creek.
Staff members collected jars from 22 sites in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and New York over a two-year period. The water was analyzed under microscopes at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.
“The potential harm to aquatic organisms — from ingesting the plastics themselves and, most likely, the chemicals and contaminants attached to them — is something we need to address,” said David Velinsky, a senior scientist at the academy. “It will take time, and we need to stay on it.”
PennEnvironment is urging lawmakers to adopt producer responsibility legislation, which would require plastic manufacturers to fund and manage programs to handle waste and recycling.
Other recommendations include banning single-use plastics and prohibiting companies from dumping the pellets, or nurdles, used to make plastic products.
“There is no silver bullet solution for the mini-menace of microplastics,” Savitz added. “Fundamentally, we need to cut plastic pollution off at the source and change the way society deals with our waste, if we want to protect our environment and our health from this threat.”
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