Group finds microplastics from clothing, car tires in Gallatin River

[Ptah]

As it flows from Yellowstone National Park to Three Forks, the Gallatin River picks up all kinds of materials, including miniature plastics and cotton and wool, according to a research project completed earlier this year.

Adventure Scientists, a Bozeman-based group, has finished the Gallatin Microplastics Initiative, a two-year data collection project on the scope of microplastics in the entire Gallatin River watershed. The group worked with 120 volunteers beginning in September 2015 to gather more than 700 water samples from 72 sites throughout the river system, including on the mainstem and some of its tributaries.

More than half of the samples contained the particles, which are smaller than a centimeter in size and have the potential to harm wildlife and people. An analysis of the particles showed 15 different materials found in everyday products like clothing, car tires and cosmetic products.

A full research paper is forthcoming on the project, but the group has shared some of its findings publicly. Microplastics have been studied extensively in saltwater environments, but less so in freshwater environments. Researchers say the project is unique because it looks hard at a cohesive watershed, and one at the head of one of the longest river systems in the country.

https://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/environment/group-finds-microplastics-from-clothing-car-tires-in-gallatin-river/article_05994ae4-2b37-5b88-beea-7806d99ae02b.html

[cilla4progress]

1. Read this. Thanks for posting.

Just there. Daughter moved there in the "stampede" last year. Special place.