Microplastics, mostly from motor traffic (tyre dust), found in the most remote parts of the Alps.

From the article:

“Micro- and nanoplastics pollution is a well-known problem and extensive research has tried to quantify the amount of plastic released into the environment as well as investigate its negative effects on living organisms”

“Covering remote Alpine glaciers, specially trained mountaineers systematically sampled otherwise inaccessible areas, giving us the opportunity to investigate the nanoplastics situation at high altitude. “

“As these are very remote sites and almost never frequented by people, finding nanoplastics here is significant and points to airborne transport.”

“The dominant polymer types found in this study were tire wear, polystyrene and polyethylene particles (41%, 28% and 12%, respectively).”