Water Resources Research Act Program

Details for Project ID 2018RI134B

Assessing Microplastic and Microfibers Contamination in Small Water Utilities and Private Wells

Institute: Rhode Island
Year Established: 2018 Start Date: 2018-03-01 End Date: 2019-02-28
Total Federal Funds: $13,162 Total Non-Federal Funds: $29,844

Principal Investigators: Vinka Craver

Project Summary: Scarce studies have focused on the presence of microplastic in the water treated in small water utilities and private well. Moreover, most studies have focused on particles larger than 33 microns and only few studies have focused on the nano scale which can have higher negative impacts in aquatic organism (Hanvey et al., 2017; Hidalgo-Ruz et al., 2012). Therefore, the goals of this propose study are: 1) determine the concentration of microplastics in small water utilities and private well in South Kingstown, RI, and 2) in the case of small water utilities determine variations of microplastic concentration and composition throughout the distribution system.