The new projects have started their work in the spring of 2020 and had a joint kick-off meeting in May. A booklet summarizing the projects is now available below.
The six projects are:
- ANDROMEDA - Analysis techniques for quantifying nano-and microplastic particles and their degradation in the marine environment – Coordinator: Dr Richard Sempéré, Université d'Aix-Marseille, France
- HOTMIC - Horizontal and vertical oceanic distribution, transport, and impact of microplastics – Coordinator: Dr Aaron Beck, GEOMAR Helmholtz-Zentrum für Ozeanforschung Kiel, Germany
- FACTS - Fluxes and Fate of Microplastics in Northern European Waters – Coordinator: Prof Jes Vollertsen, Aalborg University, Denmark
- microplastiX - Integrated approach on the fate of MicroPlastics (MPs) towards healthy marine ecosystems - Prof Luca Brandt KTH, Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden
- i-plastic - Dispersion and impacts of micro- and nano-plastics in the tropical and temperate oceans: from regional land-ocean interface to the open ocean – Coordinator: Prof Patrizia Ziveri, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain
- RESPONSE - Toward a risk-based assessment of microplastic pollution in marine ecosystems - Coordinator: Prof Francesco Regoli, Polytechnic University of Marche, Italy
The new round of projects builds on an initial call for proposals of which four international research projects were funded from 2016 until 2019. These research projects have substantially improved the knowledge about the analysis, weathering and ecotoxicological effects of microplastics in the marine environment. However, not all relevant questions have been addressed in the four earlier projects, leading to a second joint call for transnational research projects.
Based on the evaluations by peer referees and an expert panel, six projects were selected. Funding for the research projects was awarded through a competitive call process in which 38 joint proposals requested in total €42 million.
Reference: Microplastics in the marine environment - JPI Oceans Research projects 2020 - 2023. JPI Oceans, Brussels, Belgium. 2020. DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.11817.42084