| July 18th, 2024 | News

In May, the 34th Annual Meeting of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC Europe 2024) took place in Seville, Spain. The SOS-ZEROPOL2030 project was wel represented at SETAC 2024, with four of our project partner scientists present from SINTEF Ocean and GRID-Arendal.

Scientists, managers and policymakers concerned with environmental quality, gathered from May 5th to May 9th, 202, at the FIBES Conference and Exhibition Centre in Seville, to address pressing environmental issues through science and policy integration. The conference’s focus of this year was on “Science-based Solutions in Times of Crisis: Integrating Science and Policy for Environmental Challenges”.

Representing SOS-ZEROPOL2030, a team consisting of Thomas Maes from GRID-Arendal, along with Emily Cowan, Andy Booth, and Lisbeth Sorensen from SINTEF Ocean, participated and contributed to the conference by chairing sessions, presenting and participating in discussions.

The 34th SETAC Europe took place at the FIBES Conference and Exhibition Centre in Seville, Spain

Integrating science with policy to tackle plastic pollution

Thomas Maes representing GRID-Arendal, contributed to the conference by focusing on marine litter and plastic pollution. He chaired a session called “Plastic Pollution: Bridging the Gap Between Science and Policy Needs,” emphasising the crucial role of integrating scientific research with policy action to tackle the global challenge of plastic pollution. Thomas also presented his work on how existing governance frameworks can strengthen the future global plastics treaty and provided expert insights on the presence and impact of plastic additives in the marine environment.

Plastics governance

Emily Cowan, a Research Scientist at SINTEF Ocean, presented her research on plastics governance with a focus on tyre wear particles and their integration into the ongoing development of the Global Plastics Treaty. She also highlighted stakeholder-driven workshops and her work on trans-disciplinary research projects addressing Arctic multi-level governance and plastic pollution.

Researcher Emily Cohen from SINTEF Ocean presents her poster at SETAC Europe 2024

Plastic pollution and related chemicals

Andy Booth and Lisbeth Sorensen from SINTEF Ocean participated in discussions on environmental chemistry and ecotoxicology. Their presentations covered a range of topics, including methods for producing and analyzing environmentally relevant small microplastic and nanoplastic test materials, monitoring chemical emissions from offshore wind farms, and assessing the impacts, gaps, and opportunities in this area. They also introduced a novel biomonitoring platform using caged lumpfish eggs to study the spread of rubber- and plastic-associated chemicals from urban runoff into a harbor in Central Norway.

Other topics Booth and Sorensen covered included comparing the degradation and toxicity of post-consumer recycled (PCR) plastics versus pristine plastic bags, examining the impact of microplastics and additives in marine ecosystems, and investigating the environmental fate of nano- and small microplastics in aqueous environments. Additionally, they assessed the toxicity of multi-polymer and multi-size microplastic mixtures on early life stages of Atlantic cod, explored the impact of chemical leachates from car tire rubber on marine microalgae, and identified slowly-biodegrading constituents in petroleum substances using advanced chemical analysis.

In addition, they discussed their examination of the leaching of chemicals from offshore wind farm coatings into the marine environment, assessed microplastics in sediments around the Hywind Scotland offshore wind farm, quantified and characterized microplastic release from different aquaculture nets, and explored plastics as vectors for antimicrobial resistance and pathogens from wastewater discharge in the marine environment through the PlastiSpread Project. These presentations provided comprehensive insights into the environmental impacts and management of plastic pollution and related chemicals.

Advancing environmental protection aligned with the EU zero pollution agenda

SETAC Europe 2024 showed that significant progress is being made in addressing environmental challenges through interdisciplinary collaboration and science-based solutions. The conference highlighted the importance of integrating scientific research with policy action to tackle plastic pollution, chemical additives, tyre wear particles, and microplastics.

The contributions of researchers and SOS-ZEROPOL2030 partners, like Thomas Maes, Emily Cowan, Andy Booth, and Lisbeth Sorensen, showcased innovative approaches and practical insights crucial for advancing environmental protection and aligning with the EU’s zero pollution agenda. Their work underscores the necessity of informed, collaborative efforts to achieve sustainable environmental quality and ecosystem integrity​.