Special Session: Presentation of Projects
Coordinated by AEBAM
The goal of the session was:
- Present 13 pioneering projects in 5-minute talks about “Conservation and Awareness” and “Circular Economy and Innovation”.
Chairperson:
- Estíbaliz López Samaniego, founding member and Research Commission member of the Spanish Marine Litter Association (AEBAM).
Speakers:
Conservation and Awareness projects
- A Pesca por um Mar sem Lixo - (Fishing for Litter) - Paula Sobral - APLM - Portuguese Marine Litter Association
- SOS Redes Alborán – David León – Hombre y Territorio Association
- Effects of marine litter presence on beaches on the reproduction of Caretta Caretta turtle (Sal Island, Cape Verde). - Laura Corredor - Vertidos Cero Association
- Marine Debris: the threat at San Juan Bay Estuary Watershed - Cristina I. Ramírez Colón - Programa del Estuario de la Bahía de San Juan
- Reset Your Habits - Diane BEAUMENAY-JOANNET - Surfrider Foundation Europe
- Red de Vigilantes Marinos - Antonio Márquez – Oceánidas
- Marine Litter Hub – Marina González – Vertidos Cero Association
Circular Economy and Innovation projects
- OCEANWiSE Project. Wise Reduction of EPS Marine Litter in the North-East Atlantic Ocean – Carlos León – SUSTAINN
- International Quebec-France Forum. Plastics solutions: recycling innovations on both sides of the Atlantic - Maryse Vermette - Éco Entreprises Québec
- MARCET Project - Tania Montoto – Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
- ROMULO (Robotics and Modelling for Underwater Litter Observation) – Francisco López-Castejón – Technical University of Cartagena
- OCT - COMPETITIVE MULTITASK MARINE TECHNOLOGY - Santiago Miranda Palomino - Ocean Cleaner Technology
- Intelligent technology for the recovery of the environment- Moisès Cruañas Cardona - ONA Safe and Clean
Conservation and Awareness projects
-
A Pesca por um Mar sem Lixo - (Fishing for Litter) - Paula Sobral - APLM - Portuguese Marine Litter Association
Paula said that the project started in 2015, when a student went on board a ship and captured and quantified the marine litter (that captured by trawling nets, sorting out the litter produced on board and all the litter was disposed of in the garbage bins in ports) of the coast of Portugal with the aim of contributing to the implementation of the port reception facilities for litter from fisheries. The marine litter was also georeferenced and showed that the major presence was in the mouth of the main rivers. The pilot experiment had good results and they now plan to cover 16 out of the 24 continental Portugal fishing ports.
Paula Sobral - APLM - Portuguese Marine Litter Association
- SOS Redes Alborán – David León – Hombre y Territorio Association
David explained that the project started in 2017, and its goal is to inform, assess and act on the minimization of damage caused by lost and abandoned fishing gears to species and marine protected areas (MPAs) in the Alboran Sea. To attain the objectives, they work on three axes: dissemination, citizen science and the most innovative and important part, the technical part, where specialized staff evaluates whether or not litter should be removed from the environment due to its integration in it. He highlighted that they have also participated in the elaboration of a tool for fishing gears detection.
David León – Hombre y Territorio Association
- Effects of marine litter presence on beaches on the reproduction of Caretta Caretta turtle (Sal Island, Cape Verde). - Laura Corredor - Vertidos Cero Association
Laura talked about an experiment carried out on Sal Island, Cape Verde. The aim of the project was to study the effects of the presence of marine litter on the beach from the hatching of Caretta caretta turtle until it manages to go into the sea. It intends to demonstrate that high amounts of marine litter on land reduce the chances of survival of this endangered species. She also highlighted the importance of investing in studies focused on the early stages of turtle life.
Laura Corredor – Vertidos Cero Association
- Marine Debris: the threat at San Juan Bay Estuary Watershed - Cristina I. Ramírez Colón - The San Juan Bay Estuary Programme
Cristina explained that The San Juan Bay Estuary Programme was aimed at protecting the environment and managing aquatic waste, protecting water quality. She highlighted that mostly all the litter found on the sea bottom comes from land; therefore, the programme has a project with rainwater filters for the sewage system, not allowing waste generated on land to pass to the water of the bay. They also have a tool able to pass through different water bodies to collect microplastics. She mentioned an oil recycling campaign to avoid its incorrect handling.
Cristina I. Ramírez Colón - The San Juan Bay Estuary Programme
- Reset Your Habits - Diane BEAUMENAY-JOANNET - Surfrider Foundation Europe
Diane explained the objectives of the foundation, which are to protect oceans, coasts and the people who enjoy them. Their focus is to work in three main areas: quality and health, coast management and marine litter. Surfrider developed a volunteer programme called Ocean Initiatives, through which they noticed that plastic bottles were the third most commonly found item on beaches. She indicated that the idea is not to clean up the beach, but to collect data on marine litter to know the issue better in order to find solutions, and that is why they write a report yearly with the results. She said that they also design pedagogical tools and perform citizen science activities. They believe that it is necessary to change the policy and the economic framework in order to provide a solution. They develop advocacy related to reducing plastic bottles throughout the life cycle of the products. They propose measures at national and European levels.
Diane Beaumenay-Joannet - Surfrider Foundation Europe
- Red de Vigilantes Marinos - Antonio Márquez – Oceánidas
Antonio explained that the project of the Network of Marine Guards started in 2015, and its aim was to involve divers in conservation actions, awareness about marine sea life and data collection to support scientific research. He said that the network started in the south of Spain and now up to 40 spots around the country collaborate with it, and this year it is going to be an international event. All the litter collected is sorted, weighed and georeferenced and the data are uploaded onto the App MARNOBA. Nowadays, a diving clean-up and a beach clean-up are developed simultaneously. Furthermore, they develop activities about the marine environment in schools with the results obtained from the beach clean-up. They are developing a new project focus on repairing the nets taken out of the sea to transform them into the new “bags” used for the beach clean-up.
Antonio Márquez – Oceánidas
- Marine Litter Hub – Marina González – Vertidos Cero Association
Marina explained that the goal of the Marine Litter Hub was to become a connection point between all sectors affected by plastic pollution. They offer a platform with many pedagogical materials to raise awareness about marine pollution. She said that the project works in 3 sectors: educational, material for dissemination and citizen science. She highlighted that all the material is available to download.
Marina González – Vertidos Cero Association
Round of questions
- To Laura Corredor: Was the experiment carried out with a single turtle nest? Has the experiment been continued over time?
- Same person: Have the results of the experiment been published?
- To Paula Sobral: Are fishermen involved in the sorting of marine litter?
- To David León: Due to the possibility of finding sea life on marine litter, is it going to be evaluated whether or not this litter should be removed?
- Same person: On the evaluation of the removal or manipulation of marine litter, is just the presence of native species being considered or are non-native species also considered on making decisions?
Circular Economy and Innovation projects
- OCEANWiSE Project. Wise Reduction of EPS Marine Litter in the North-East Atlantic Ocean – Carlos León – SUSTAINN
Carlos explained that the aim of the project is the reduction of expanded and extruded polystyrene (EPS/XPS) products in marine litter in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean. He highlighted that the activities they are currently performing now are addressing the entire life cycle of the EPS/XPS, integrating the circular economy principles into design and developing alternatives from scratch, building a stakeholders’ platform to collect all the information and performing a life cycle cost assessment of the current applications and the new ones that will be found. The target industries on which they are focused are the fishing industry, food goods industry and single-use items.
Carlos León – SUSTAINN
- International Quebec-France Forum. Plastics solutions: recycling innovations on both sides of the Atlantic - Maryse Vermette - Éco Entreprises Québec
Maryse explained that they finance all the municipal recycling programmes carried out in Quebec-France and they are developing a great deal of projects to optimize the value change of recycling. She talked about their participation in a Forum where they presented molecular recycling technology and the important role they have played connecting start-ups with investors. She highlighted their interest in finding solutions to recycle their packaging and printed matter.
Maryse Vermette - Éco Entreprises Québec
-
MARCET Project - Tania Montoto – Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
Tania talked about the project carried out in Macaronesia. The goal of the project was to observe how marine water quality affects the health of the cetacean population located in the project area, with the support of Whale Watching companies for the water sampling. She explained the innovative microplastic device for sampling microplastics through a pumping system.
Tania Montoto – Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria
- ROMULO (Robotics and Modelling for Underwater Litter Observation) – Francisco López-Castejón – Technical University of Cartagena
He explained that their aim is to map the marine litter located at the bottom of the sea with underwater vehicles. They use mathematical models to find the initial mapping area. They are able to know the location data (latitude, longitude and depth) of the marine litter, allowing a map to be generated that shows the areas with higher amounts of waste. He explained that it is possible to classify the items through Software they have developed.
Francisco López-Castejón – Technical University of Cartagena
- OCT - COMPETITIVE MULTITASK MARINE TECHNOLOGY - Santiago Miranda Palomino - Ocean Cleaner Technology
Santiago explained the functions and advantages of a multitask catamaran able to collect marine litter and carry out port works. He mentioned the functions of this vessel that can be carried out, such as first response, fast acting on arrival and identification, collection system, storage of spill to the point of management, etc.
Santiago Miranda Palomino - Ocean Cleaner Technology
- Intelligent technology for the recovery of the environment - Moisés Cruañas Cardona - ONA Safe and Clean
Moisés said that the project started in 2014 and is focused on cleaning up the surface, before waste sinks to the bottom. He explained that they placed special emphasis on littoral conservation, tourism and marine litter. The vessels they build are environmental friendly. He stressed that they are currently working on unmanned vessels which will be able to work in an autonomous way.
Second Round of questions
- To Francisco López-Castejón How useful was the information provided by the Lagrangian model in the detection of Hot Spots?