Microplastics are intricate plastic particles (<5 mm in length) with complex chemical mixtures that are pervasive globally. Nonetheless, our understanding of microplastic contamination in the Canadian Arctic is limited. Therefore, this thesis aimed to investigate the concentration and characteristics of microplastics in and surrounding the community of Iqaluit, Nunavut. Our findings suggest Iqaluit is a local source of microplastics in the Arctic based on their concentration in road dust (2.83 ± 3.72 µg/g). Microplastic concentrations were comparable to those in metropolitan areas and given their abundance in parking lots it is suggested that these are temporary reservoirs for microplastics and tire wear particles. Further, lakes predominately upwind of Iqaluit had a greater concentration of microplastics (134 ± 204 µg/L) than lakes downwind (30.8 ± 55.5 µg/L). These findings underscore the importance of assessing both local-scale and long-range sources when examining microplastic contamination in the Arctic.
Author Keywords: Atmospheric microplastics, Biomonitoring, Canadian Arctic, Fourier-Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Plastic pollution