Microplastics in the Delaware River, northeastern United States
Microplastics are a contaminant of increasing concern in aquatic environments. Our understanding of microplastics in freshwater environments has increased dramatically over the past decade, but we still lack information on microplastic occurrence and biological uptake in National Park Service (NPS) waters. During 2015–19, the U.S. Geological Survey and the NPS conducted a three-phase study of microplastic occurrence and biological uptake in NPS waters. This fact sheet summarizes results from Phase 3 in which microplastics were sampled at nine locations spanning various land uses on the Upper Delaware, Middle Delaware, and Lower Delaware Scenic and Recreational River and its tributaries in the northeastern United States. Water and sediment samples were collected during baseflow conditions at each location to assess microplastic occurrence, and fish and mussels were collected at a subset of locations to assess potential biological uptake of microplastics.
Citation Information
| Publication Year | 2021 |
|---|---|
| Title | Microplastics in the Delaware River, northeastern United States |
| DOI | 10.3133/fs20203071 |
| Authors | Austin K. Baldwin, Andrew R. Spanjer, Brett Hayhurst, Donald Hamilton |
| Publication Type | Report |
| Publication Subtype | USGS Numbered Series |
| Series Title | Fact Sheet |
| Series Number | 2020-3071 |
| Index ID | fs20203071 |
| Record Source | USGS Publications Warehouse |
| USGS Organization | Idaho Water Science Center; Washington Water Science Center; Wisconsin Water Science Center |
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Microplastics in the Delaware River, 2018
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Microplastics in the Delaware River, 2018
This dataset describes the quantity and morphology of microplastics in water, sediment, fish, and mussel samples from the Delaware River and select tributaries, including portions of the Upper Delaware Scenic & Recreational River, Middle Delaware National Scenic River, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area, and Lower Delaware Scenic & Recreational River. Water and sediment samples were colle - Connect