Revising the role of discharge in global river plastic transport

In briefRiver discharge has long been assumed to control plastic transport from land to the ocean.Yet, observations often fail to show this link.This work presents a revised conceptual framework distinguishing between a river's transport capacity and the availability of plastic for transport.It shows that plastic availability-governed by human activity and plastic stocks on land-usually limits transport, not discharge.This perspective reshapes global plastic modeling and guides targeted mitigation strategies.