When we think of pollution in our rivers, lakes, or oceans, we often picture oil slicks or floating plastic bottles. But suspended sediment is an important agent that must not be overlooked. Suspended sediment can act like a vehicle for pollutants, carrying them far from their original source.
Many pollutants—especially heavy metals, pesticides, hydrocarbons, and microplastics—tend to bind to sediment particles. This happens because:
- Sediment has a large surface area, making it a perfect “magnet” for contaminants.
- Many pollutants are hydrophobic, so they prefer to stick to solids rather than dissolve in water.
Once attached, pollutants essentially hitch a ride with the suspended sediment. This means that it is now the suspended sediment dynamics that determine the transport of the pollutant. Understanding suspended sediment dynamics is therefore of great importance when investigating pollutant transport in the aquatic environment.
Read more about how LISSTs can help with that in our article here!