Microplastics (MPs), in the form of fibers, films, and fragments, are ubiquitous in different environmental matrixes, including water, sediment, and air, and are considered emerging global pollutants because of their adverse effects on ecosystems and human health. The identification of various sources and spatial distribution patterns of microplastics in freshwater ecosystems still remains a subject of ongoing research, revealing several limitations within the existing microplastics database for freshwater environments. Their investigation is also challenged by analytical procedures, often because of a lack of a standard procedure for comprehensive analysis and quantification of MPs in environmental systems. Therefore, a better understanding of the source-specific occurrence and distribution of MPs in the urban water environment is essential for better management and control of MPs pollution. This study examined analytical techniques for MPs in different urban source-specific sediment samples and quantified their abundance by size of MPs. The collected samples were subjected to identification through a series of processes involving Density Separation, Oxidative Digestion, Nile Red, and Fluorescence Microscope. The MP concentration in urban water sediments ranged from 0.021g/100g to 0.205g/100g dried weight, and fibers and fragments were dominant types of MPs. The highest number of MPs was detected in sediment samples collected from the semi-commercial area. The predominant sources are likely to originate from residential wastes, commercial wastes, urban runoff, and air deposition. Our proposed presentation will not help regulators, scientists, and engineers for MPs control but will provide prospects for research exploring their analytical procedures.
