Students at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) have tested technologies with which plastic waste is automatically removed from rivers. The young researchers, who want to tackle the global problem of marine pollution, are starting their project with rivers, so that the litter cannot get into the seas in the first place. With the help of a robot, the plastic bottles, toys or shoes fished out of rivers are to be automatically sorted and separated from biological materials.

This study, which was published in German in April, is a further development of the BKV model "From Land to Sea". The report reflects the discussion among experts which is now moving away from focusing solely on discharges of plastics into the seas, and calls for a more comprehensive look at the discharges and final whereabouts of plastics in the environment. The report now provides a holistic picture of the discharges and final whereabouts of plastic waste in the aquatic and terrestrial environments. An English version will follow shortly.

Microparticles in the southern part of the North Sea stem predominantly from paints and surface coatings of ships' hulls. This was the result of a study from the Institute for Marine Chemistry and Biology of the University of Oldenburg. It claims to be the first study offering an overview of microplastic distribution in the North Sea. The research team led by Dr. Barbara Scholz-Böttcher found above all plastic particles stemming from binders of ships coatings. As a source, they are said to be of similar importance as tire abrasion on land. The results show that significantly more microplastic is produced on the open seas than previously supposed.

In connection with the concluding conference of the funding priority "Plastics in the Environment", at which several joint projects also dealt with modeling approaches and measuring methods for the analysis of plastic discharges into the soil and wastewater (see our report), we asked an expert on the subject for his appraisal of the results and about the present situation with the standardization of the measuring methods: Dr. Claus Gerhard Bannick is head of the specialist department for wastewater technology research at the German Environment Agency (UBA).