Nanoplastics in the Arctic: presence, source and fate

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Nanoplastics have recently come to the forefront of political, scientific, and public attention due to their high reactivity and nanoscale particle behaviour variations compared to their microscale particles. At the nanoscale, material properties (diffusivity and biological effects) are exponentially enhanced. Therefore, nanoplastics present a greater risks for the environment and the living species and also a greater analytical challenge. Though microplastics are likely to reach the Arctic through atmospheric and oceanic currents, there is no data and knowledges on nanoplastics in the Arctic. And yet, the Arctic is one of Earth's key ecosystems, and conditions there affect many fundamental parameters of our climate and living organisms. A change in the physical, chemical and biological properties of this system will irremediably induce a substantial change at the global scale. Due to the wide variety of organisms and species living and depending to the Arctic ice, the presence of NPs will induce a catastrophic impact on this system. The objective of this programme for the next five years is to determine the presence, fate and impact of nanoplastics in the Arctic, particularly in the context of the climate change and the exponentially growing release of plastic debris in the environment. More specifically, I will address the following questions: 1) Where are nanoplastics located in the Arctic? 2) How can we best sample and characterize the presence of carbon-based nanoparticles in Arctic matrices? 3) How can we differentiate the presence of nanoplastics from the natural organic matter (NOM) in ice, the water column, and sediment, especially during ice formation and the algae bloom? 4) What is the relative abundancy of nanoplastics in the icepack, the water column and the sediment? 5) How can we discriminate between atmospheric and oceanic sources (global transportation) of nanoplastics, and local sources (maritime transport and freshwater outlets)? 6) What is the age and lifecycle of nanoplastics in the Arctic? To do so we propose to develop new analytical methods applied to various Arctic matrices sampled in strategic zones in Baffin Bay in order to obtain a complete distribution of nanoplastics from ice pack to water column to sediment. For the first time I propose to trace the nanoplastics life cycle from source to their final potential assimilation by biota. Due to the wide variety of organisms living in, and depending on, the presence of nanoplastics may have a catastrophic impact on the Arctic. For nanoplastics, plastic debris in the environment is already on political agendas and a matter of public concern. If we can demonstrate that nanoplastics are present in the Arctic, then new decisions and research will be required to mitigate their effects, since it is not yet possible to remove them from the environment.