On February 10th, 2023, 1-3 PM UTC the MAELSTROM team fromCIIMAR will organize a Networking Friday Webinar dedicated to marine litter and biodiversity, focusing on current scenarios and future challenges.

Marine Litter (ML) is considered to be an emerging issue threatening environmental and human health, resulting in severe impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services. It is urgent to discuss effective solutions to monitor and remove ML from ecosystems, while also reducing plastic consumption by creating awareness and by promoting the adoption of good practices, behaviours and choices. In this context, MAELSTROM (Smart technology for MARinE Litter SusTainable RemOval and Management) project, funded by the European Commission under the H2020 Program, brings together a consortium of 14 partners from 8 countries with the mission to investigate and implement innovative technologies for the identification, collection, recycling and recovery of ML.

 

In the scope of MAELSTROM, the Networking Friday Webinar - Marine Litter and Biodiversity: Co-detection and impacts - is an Ocean Decade Event organized by the CIIMAR-UP, in partnership with The Atlantic International Research Centre (AIR Centre) and GEO BON Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (GEO BON/MBON).

 

The webinar will start with an integrated overview of determining ecosystem health using science and policy. The first session will be focused on the co-detection and impacts of marine debris at different marine food web levels, including marine plankton, fish, reptiles and mammals and on how the MAELSTROM project brings new solutions to tackle the Marine Litter in coastal areas, linking citizens to science and policy. This first session will be followed by a round table as a discussion on how can we improve the detection, reduction and removal of ML in our ocean, including the need for standardization of methodologies, new solutions and effective policies.

More Information and Registration:

https://www.aircentre.org/netfridays-marine-biodiversity-11/

 

Agenda (PM UTC)

1:00 – Welcome and Introduction, Isabel Sousa-Pinto (FCUP and CIIMAR, University of Porto, PT)

01:10 – Keynote | Marine Litter and Microplastics: determining ecosystem health using science and policy moving from contamination to pollution per se, Mike Elliott (University of Hull, United Kingdom)

01:30 – Session | Marine Litter and Biodiversity: Co-detection and impacts. Moderator: Luis R. Vieira (CIIMAR, University of Porto, Portugal)

• New solutions to tackle the marine litter issue in coastal areas: the MAELSTROM project, Fantina Madricardo (ISMAR-CNR, Italy)
• Plastic additives: a major emerging concern in marine plastic pollution, Rodrigo Almeda (EOMAR-ECOAQUA, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain)
• An overview of the effects of nanoplastics in fish, Mariana Teles (Universitat Autònoma Barcelona, Sapin)
• Presence and impacts of marine litter on Mediterranean marine megafauna within the Plastic Busters MPAs project, Matteo Galli (UNISI, Italy)

2:30 – Round-Table: Current scenarios and future challenges. Moderator: Isabel Sousa-Pinto (FCUP and CIIMAR, University of Porto, Portugal)

3:00 – Closing