Aircraft emissions as emerging soil pollutants: Implications for soil quality, food safety and ecosystem health

The expansion of global aviation has increased emissions of carbon dioxide (CO₂), nitrogen oxides (NO_x), sulfur oxides (SO_x), carbon monoxide (CO), unburned hydrocarbons, and particulate matter, including ultrafine particles. Aviation also affects climate through contrail formation and NO_x-mediated atmospheric chemistry. Beyond aircraft-engine exhaust, airport activities can introduce per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), particularly through aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) releases and runoff, and may contribute microplastics through tire and pavement wear, waste, and other operational pathways. Airport-specific microplastic emission and deposition fluxes remain poorly quantified. Particle-associated pollutants and persistent airport-associated contaminants can reach soils through atmospheric deposition, runoff, and direct operational releases; atmospheric transformation of nitrogen and sulfur oxides can also deliver reactive species to receiving soils. Soil microbial communities may respond through changes in diversity, composition, and enzyme activities, including shifts in beneficial or pollutant-tolerant taxa. Soil-plant transfer may link contamination to food safety and ecosystem health. Airport studies indicate localized contamination near operational areas, although source attribution and temporal deposition trends remain unresolved. Potential management options include source-level emission reduction through sustainable aviation fuels, green buffer zones, soil amendments, microbial remediation, and phytoremediation; their effectiveness in reducing airport-soil contamination requires validation. Long-term causal evidence linking aviation-specific deposition to soil-function changes, plant uptake, and food-chain exposure remains limited. This review synthesizes pollutant sources, deposition pathways, effects on soil quality and microbial functioning, ecological and food-safety implications, methodological constraints, and management priorities for aviation-affected soils.