Community News
UC Riverside Study Finds Microplastics in Sierra Nevada Snowfall
UC Riverside researchers found microplastics falling with snow at seven sites across the Sierra Nevada, including remote areas far from human activity. Published in Environmental Science and Technology, the study measured 270 to 3,200 plastic particles per square meter per day at remote sites and up to 7,500 near Mammoth Mountain. Researchers traced storm air masses over Fresno and Madera counties, suggesting the Central Valley as a potential pollution source. The Sierra Nevada snowpack supplies about 30% of California's freshwater, though the study did not assess health effects or quantify how much pollution reaches drinking water.