Activities & Lessons

Microplastics 101

December 31, 2024

Microplastics 101: A conversation with the experts

In the summer of 2019, a team of scientists from the Desert Research Institute (DRI) teamed up with the League’s Pipe Keepers volunteer program to search for the presence of microplastics in Lake Tahoe. Unfortunately, they didn’t come up empty-handed.

DRI and the League sat down for a recorded discussion of what we know about microplastics, how we can prevent them and the role of citizen scientists in making important new discoveries. In this video, you’ll hear from the League’s Emily Frey, Citizen Science Coordinator, and DRI’s Meghan Collins, Education Program Manager.

CLICK HERE to send the DIY instructional video to a friend.

While there are likely to be several sources of microplastics found in Tahoe, plastics are consistently the most-gathered type of litter during the League’s volunteer cleanups held throughout the Tahoe Basin. If microplastics are here in Tahoe, that means they are likely everywhere, even impacting our food and water supplies, not to mention our wildlife and wild places.

Take these seven simple steps to prevent microplastic pollution today. Visit the Desert Research Institute’s Microplastics Laboratory for more info.