We are working to establish robust approaches to understanding and monitoring the sources, distribution, and fate of plastic waste generated in the Eastern Pacific, and exploring the behavioural and cultural drivers for plastic usage and disposal.
The Galapagos Microplastic research explores the presence, composition and environmental drivers of plastic contamination across the marine ecosystem at an island scale, identifying the most vulnerable vertebrate species in Ecuador’s Galapagos Islands and the possible sources of plastic debris entering the archipelago.
This project seeks to develop a predictive technology that will focus clean-up efforts and efficiently remove plastic pollution before it impacts sensitive wildlife and habitats. Combining ocean data, and using a particle tracking tool, the project will explore the sources of plastic pollution entering Galapagos.
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) has been extensively used, and discarded PPE has been observed in many different environments, including on tourist beaches. This research examined the distribution and densities of face masks on some of the main tourist beaches in Chile, and we monitored their daily accumulation rates on one beach in northern-central Chile.
Oceanographers Erik van Sebille and Stefanie Ympa from Utrecht University are developing a predictive app that lets the Galapagos National Park remove plastic from beaches as it washes up.
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