A new study shows all Illinois rivers contain microplastics.
The study was conducted by the Chicago-based Environment Illinois Research & Education Center and published last week.
Emily Kowalski, one of the lead researchers form the study, said water was sampled from 31 sites across Illinois - including the Mississippi River, the Ohio River, the Illinois River and the Great Lakes.
Microplastics were found at every site.
Kowalski said sadly, she wasn't surprised by the results.
"We know that there is plastic being found basically everywhere," she said. "From the tallest mountain-tops to the deepest trenches of our ocean. So I was not too surprised."
Plus, researchers are beginning to find microplastics in more than just waterways.
"We also have seen research that points to tiny bits of plastic altering the metabolic and brain behavior of fish," Kowalski said.
She said that's alarming, considering the fact that microplastics are now being found in humans.
However, she said there is some good news.
"In the Mississippi River, we found microfibers, microfragments, and microfilms. We did not actually find microbeads in any of the sites that we tested," she said. "That's a good thing."
Kowalski said that's probably due to Illinois' ban on products that contain microbeads.
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But there is some good news.
But there is some good news.
