Sources of Synthetic Microfiber Pollutants in the Environment and Their Fate and Toxicity

The production of synthetic polymer is increasing day by day because of the growing use of synthetic textiles, which results in the amount of microplastic fibers released into the environment skyrocketing. Today synthetic microfiber pollutants are a global concern, because of their reach from Antarctica to deep-sea water with various shapes and sizes. Previously, these synthetic microfibers were found in both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. But it is astonishing to the global research community that these synthetic microfibers are also found inside the human body and affect human life with their toxicity and hazardous nature. Today, more than 4.85 trillion synthetic microfibers are released into the environment as waste, which is toxic and acts as a carrier, spreading toxicity across different ecosystems. In this review, we discuss these toxic behaviors and the sources by which they impact human health. We also discuss the fate of these synthetic microfibers and how these microfibers affect various organisms concerning their food chain and food web system. In the end, we also conclude how to reduce the spreading of these synthetic fibers and create public awareness to control it.