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Plastic pollution

Science group

Plastic pollution

Plastic pollution is a growing threat to the world’s oceans, posing a serious risk to the health of marine life, ecosystems and society.

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  TYRE-LOSS: Lost at Sea – where are all the tyre particles?

  Tyre particles are increasingly recognised as a potentially major source of microplastic pollution, yet limited data exists on their accumulation and risks in the marine environments. The TYRE-LOSS project is tackling this critical knowledge gap.
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  BIO-PLASTIC-RISK: Biodegradable Bioplastics – Assessing Environmental Risk

  Biodegradable bioplastics (BBPs) offer promising solutions to the global plastic pollution challenge. However, our understanding of their fate in the natural environment and potential environmental effects is limited. The Bio-Risk Plastic Project brings together experts from various fields to compre...
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  FRONTAL: Satellite FRONTs for detection of Anthropogenic plastic Litter

  Fronts in coastal and oceanic regions are hot-spots for rich and diverse marine life, where floating marine debris also tends to accumulate. FRONTAL is developing a prototype for identifying areas at risk of accumulating plastic pollution to aid management of these areas.
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  The Economics of Marine Plastic Pollution: What are the Benefits of International Cooperation

  The Economics of Marine Plastic Pollution: What are the Benefits of International Cooperation? project is calculating the economic costs of the environmental damages associated with marine plastic and the benefits of cross-country coordinated action to address the problem.
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  Removing marine microplastics with mussel power

  Removing marine microplastics with mussel power is a one-year feasibility study funded by Waitrose Plan Plastic to develop an ecological solution to microplastic pollution.

07 October 2026

Marine collaboration strengthened in boost to South West region

Two of the South West’s leading organisations for marine research and education have signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), reflecting their shared commitment to addressing the key issues facing the sustainable future of oceans.

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  PML announces new Head of Group for Environmental Intelligence

  It was announced this week that

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  Food and drink litter dominates global plastic pollution

  A new study reveals the most common types of marine litter worldwide

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  PML scientists deploy innovative plastics experiment in the Arctic

  Scientists from Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) are examining how plastics and plant-based plastic alternatives break down in one of the planet’s most extreme environments.

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  PML hosts the South West Marine Ecosystems Annual Conference

  This years’ conference, titled ‘Past & Future Change’, brought together marine researchers, conservationists, regulators and citizen scientists to share knowledge, strengthen collaborations and inform future monitoring and management of the South West marine environment.