Freshwater Microplastics: Emerging Environmental Contaminants?

by Martin Wagner (Editor), Scott Lambert (Editor)

This book is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license. This volume focuses on microscopic plastic debris, also referred to as microplastics, which have been detected in aquatic environments around the globe and have accordingly raised serious concerns. The book explores whether microplastics represent emerging contaminants in freshwater systems, an area that remains underrepresented to date. Given the complexity of the issue, the book covers the current state-of-research on microplastics in rivers and lakes, including analytical aspects, environmental concentrations and sources, modelling approaches, interactions with biota, and ecological implications. To provide a broader perspective, the book also discusses lessons learned from nanomaterials and the implications of plastic debris for regulation, politics, economy, and society. In a research field that is rapidly evolving, it offers a solid overview for environmental chemists, engineers, and toxicologists, as well as water managers and policy-makers.

317 pages, Paperback

Published May 24, 2018

About the author

Martin Wagner is a writer and filmmaker living in London.
His short films include Summer, which was shown at film festivals and on TV worldwide and won him the best director award at the Birmingham Film Festival, and The Subtitles. His first novel, Rachel's Machine, was published by Montag & Martin in the UK and by Mondadori in Italy.
He translated the play Speer, which was performed and directed by Klaus Maria Brandauer at London's Almeida Theatre. His documentary Klaus Maria Brandauer: Speer in London is about the period leading up to the premiere and has been shown on British TV channel Artsworld.
In 2003 he published the acclaimed The Little Driver, which was used in Spain to educate children about traffic issues, followed in 2005 by The Little Politician.
His play The Agent premiered at London's Old Red Lion Theatre in March 2007 and was transferred to the West End's Trafalgar Studios. The play had its German-language premiere in 2008. His film adaptation of The Agent, starring William Beck, Stephen Kennedy and Maureen Lipman, and directed by Lesley Manning, premiered at the Dinard Film Festival, was released in cinemas in 2009 and is now available on Amazon Prime.
His novel Deutschland was published in 2013.
He is currently working on the play Transference and the novel After Violence.