COMPARISON OF MICROPLASTICS LEVELS IN THE AIR OF AGRICULTURAL AND URBAN AREAS OF THE CITY OF COCHABAMBA, BOLIVIA

Abstract

Microplastics are considered emerging pollutants and, in recent years have been found in all environmental compartments, even in living organisms. Their relationship with health problems was highlighted. Cochabamba is one of the cities most affected by air pollution in Latin America and there are marked differences in air quality levels between the south and north zones. La Maica, in the southern zone, is the last agricultural area of the city of Cochabamba and the northern zone is a urban area. Thus, the southern zone is characterized by higher levels of particulate matter (PM10) than the northern zone. The study seeks to compare the levels of microplastics in the air between these two zones of the city. Microplastics were characterized using commonly used density separation and optical identification techniques. The results highlighted the presence of microplastics in the air of the two zones and showed that the levels of microplastics and PM10 particles are inversely proportional under the monitoring conditions of the study. This result can be related to the environmental and socioeconomic conditions of each zone