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Occurrence, Abundance, and Distribution of Microplastics in the basins of Kabani River, Wayanad, Western Ghats, India: A Baseline Assessment

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  • Sruthi Rajeevan,
  • Sanu Francis Vengasseril,
  • Alinda Shaji,
  • Jorphin Joseph,
  • Lathika Cicily Thomas,
  • Aishwarya Purushothaman ,
  • Jimly C. Jacob
Sruthi Rajeevan
Mary Matha Arts & Science College, Mananthavady, Wayanad, Kerala, Kannur University, India
Bio
Sanu Francis Vengasseril
Mary Matha Arts & Science College, Mananthavady, Wayanad, Kerala, Kannur University, India
Bio
Alinda Shaji
Mary Matha Arts & Science College, Mananthavady, Wayanad, Kerala, Kannur University, India
Bio
Jorphin Joseph
School of Marine Sciences, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Cochin, India
Bio
Lathika Cicily Thomas
School of Marine Sciences, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Cochin, India
Bio
Aishwarya Purushothaman
School of Marine Sciences, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Cochin, India
Bio
Jimly C. Jacob
Nirmalagiri College, Koothuparamba, Kannur, India
Bio
DOI: https://doi.org/10.36253/Substantia-3799

Published 2026-01-29

Keywords

  • Kabani,
  • microplastics,
  • river,
  • Wayanad,
  • Western Ghats

How to Cite

Rajeevan, S., Vengasseril, S. F., Shaji, A., Joseph, J., Thomas, L. C., Purushothaman , A., & Jacob, J. C. (2026). Occurrence, Abundance, and Distribution of Microplastics in the basins of Kabani River, Wayanad, Western Ghats, India: A Baseline Assessment. Substantia. https://doi.org/10.36253/Substantia-3799

Copyright (c) 2026 Sruthi Rajeevan, Sanu Francis Vengasseril, Alinda Shaji, Jorphin Joseph, Lathika Cicily Thomas, Aishwarya Purushothaman , Jimly C. Jacob

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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Abstract

The large-scale production of plastics and their subsequent dispersal into water bodies have harmful impacts on aquatic environments. Despite being major manufacturers of plastic waste, developing countries have inadequate research on microplastics in freshwater ecosystems. This study examines the occurrence, abundance, and distribution of microplastic particles in the basins of the Kabani River, a region of the Western Ghats in Wayanad. The sampling was conducted at eight study stations across the Kabani River basin and analysed for microplastics using a density separation method. Identification of the microplastic particles was made using Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) with Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR). The average abundance of microplastics collected from the major tributaries of the Kabani River was 0.103 ± 0.18 particles/L (median 0.0135 particles/L) during the study. Ethylene Vinyl Acetate (EVA) was the prevalent polymer collected in the samples. As Wayanad's first report on microplastic particles in the Kabani River, this study catalyzes additional investigation into the distribution and effects of this new contaminant on the biota of several aquatic systems throughout Kerala and India.

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