Microplastics (MPs) have been widely detected in the environments, yet the sources of MPs in freshwater of remote areas at high altitude were not well understood. This study investigated the abundance and distribution of MPs in water bodies and sediments at the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP). MPs were detected in all samples (47 water and 33 sediment samples) with the mean abundance of 624.70 ± 411.39 items/m³ in water and 41.52 ± 22.31 items/kg in sediment. In descending order, the highest MP oncentrations were found in turbid rivers＞agricultural channel water＞lakes＞ordinary rivers. The results showed that MP abundance was associated with the water quality (especially COD) on the QTP, and it was negatively correlated with altitude due to less human activities (especially agricultural activities) at high altitude areas. In addition, more abundant MPs with small sized was found in the higher altitudes than low ones. Determining the effects of different environments on the distribution and degradation of MPs in the high altitude area of the QTP, this study emphasized the attention to be given to this emerging pollutant in the high altitude remote areas.

在环境中已广泛检测到微塑料（MPs），但人们对高海拔偏远地区的淡水中MPs的来源知之甚少。本研究调查了青藏高原（QTP）水体和沉积物中MP的丰度和分布。在所有样品（47个水和33个沉积物样品）中检测到MP，平均丰度为624.70±411.39个/ m ³水中的水含量为41.52±22.31千克/千克。降序排列的MP浓度最高，出现在浑浊的河流＞农业河道水＞湖泊＞普通河流中。结果表明，MP丰度与QTP上的水质（尤其是COD）有关，而由于高海拔地区的人类活动（尤其是农业活动）较少，它与海拔高度呈负相关。此外，在高海拔地区比低海拔地区发现了更多的小型MP。为了确定不同环境对QTP高海拔地区MP分布和降解的影响，本研究强调了对高海拔偏远地区这种新兴污染物的关注。