PLAWES - Microplastic contamination in the model system Weser – Wadden Sea National Park: An approach across ecosystems
To date, small plastic particles are being found world-wide in oceans, rivers and lakes. However, knowledge is still scarce about their origins and impact on the environment and organisms, including human beings.
To successfully mitigate microplastics (plastic particles of less than 5 mm size) in the oceans, we first need to improve the knowledge about contamination sources and sinks. From where do microplastic particles enter surface waters and oceans? How much is transported and how much is deposited in rivers and lakes? In this joint project funded by the BMBF, an interdisciplinary consortium is approaching those questions. The goal is to assess the microplastic contamination across ecosystems and to analyse its toxicity of for biota. Moreover, educational materials will be developed to increase public awareness of the plastic litter problem. The Thünen-Institute of Rural Studies is involved in a sub-project that aims at estimating the input pathways and quantities from agriculture.
The study area includes the Weser catchment and Wadden Sea National Park. To better understand transport processes, samples will be drawn from all rivers of the watershed. In our sub-project, the first step is a land use analysis to identify areas of potential sources for microplastics due to their land use history and geophysical properties. Statistic data as well as expert information, amongst others, will be used as sources for this analysis. Subsequently, we will analyse selected soil-, sediment, and water sample in the catchment area regarding their microplastic amounts and properties. This analysis will form the basis for a region-wide, spatial explicit estimation of microplastic amounts. The results will then enter a hydrogeological model that quantifies pathways into surface waters.
The work in PLAWES is conducted in direct cooperation with the partner project MicroCatch_Balt.
What are the relevant sources and sinks of microplastic in agriculture?
How does microplastic find its way from cropland into surface water, and are the amounts relevant for marine microplastic contamination?
9.2017 - 8.2020
Project status: ongoing