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Energy, Climate change, Environment

Marine litter database system from EU to global perspective

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Marine litter. Plastic bottles on a beach. (Bo Eide, CC BY-NC 2.0)

EMODnet Chemistry co-organised the latest UN Ocean Decade Laboratory: A Clean Ocean workshop “One Integrated Marine Debris Observing system for a Clean Ocean” on 17-19 November 2021. And work continues at EU level to further consolidate EMODnet Chemistry's role in providing quality-controlled data to tackle high priority issues relating to marine litter pollution in Europe and beyond. In particular, the recently updated EMODnet Chemistry pan-European beach litter database builds upon previous versions and will be used to revise the EU beach litter baselines.

Additionally, the Consortium has been interacting with an expert group chaired by Francois Galganì (Ifremer) to generate a first EU Seafloor trawlings baseline. Also the topic microlitter, floating and in sediment, is under evolution, since the call by MSFD Technical Group on Marine Litter to Members States for data management through EMODnet Chemistry at the beginning of 2021. On a global scale, EMODnet Chemistry has been invited to interact at different levels with the Global Partnership on Marine Litter, the UN initiative working on the global community for Marine Litter topics.

Related links

Satellite Activity of the UN Ocean Decade: Clean Ocean Laboratory - One Integrated Marine Debris Observing system for a Clean Ocean