From Sources to Solutions: A Holistic Review of Microplastic Pollution and Its Environmental Implications

Microplastics (MPs) have become global, persistent pollutants found across multiple environments, posing significant ecological and public health challenges. This review provides an in-depth analysis of microplastic contamination, detailing its origins, categories, and physicochemical properties that influence the fate, mobility, and toxic effects of MPs in the environment. It also emphasizes modern analytical and detection techniques that enable the precise characterization and measurement of MPs in various ecosystems. The review examines MPs in aquatic, terrestrial, and atmospheric environments, including sea spray aerosols, ambient air, and agricultural lands, and highlights their widespread distribution globally. The ecological hazards posed to aquatic species, especially fish, and their associated human health implications are critically assessed. Additionally, diverse mitigation and wastewater treatment techniques, including nanotechnology-based solutions, are reviewed for their efficiency. Broader aspects such as socioeconomic impacts, regulatory initiatives, and policy responses to contamination are also addressed. The review concludes by outlining the emerging issues and future directions toward sustainable control and reduction in this escalating environmental menace. The reviewed evidence shows that smaller and irregular particles generally exhibit greater mobility and biological accessibility; reported environmental concentrations depend strongly on sampling and identification methods; and no single treatment technology provides universal removal across MP/NP sizes and water matrices. Physical and membrane processes are comparatively mature for particle capture, whereas catalytic, biological, and nanomaterial-assisted approaches remain promising but require stronger evidence on energy demand, secondary residues, durability, and full-scale performance. Human exposure is well documented, but evidence linking exposure to adverse human-health outcomes remains limited.