Journal
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY
Volume 57, Issue 15, Pages 6033-6039Publisher
AMER CHEMICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c06018
Keywords
plastic litter; debris; environmental pollution; harmonization; microplastics
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Plastic pollution is a global issue, with different motivations and approaches from the public and policymakers. The public focuses on reducing plastic consumption and cleaning local environments, while policymakers work on prevention and mitigation measures. Monitoring recommendations are being defined by international, regional, and national bodies, while research activities validate approaches and compare methods. A clear and open dialogue is needed between all actors to facilitate communication on current methods, further research needs, and feasible solutions.
Plastic pollution is an international environmental problem. Desire to act is shared from the public to policymakers, yet motivation and approaches are diverging. Public attention is directed to reducing plastic consumption, cleaning local environments, and engaging in citizen science initiatives. Policymakers and regulators are working on prevention and mitigation measures, while international, regional, and national bodies are defining monitoring recommendations. Research activities are focused on validating approaches to address goals and comparing methods. Policy and regulation are eager to act on plastic pollution, often asking questions researchers cannot answer with available methods. The purpose of monitoring will define which method is implemented. A clear and open dialogue between all actors is essential to facilitate communication on what is feasible with current methods, further research, and development needs. For example, some methods can already be used for international monitoring, yet limitations including target plastic types and sizes, sampling strategy, available infrastructure and analytical capacity, and harmonization of generated data remain. Time and resources to advance scientific understanding must be balanced against the need to answer pressing policy issues.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available