Stocktaking

The project aimed to make a significant, transdisciplinary contribution to applied research on the prevention of plastic discharges into water bodies via drainage systems from a behavioural and environmental economics perspective.

In PLAWES, the modelling system of the German national park Weser-Wadden Sea was the first large European river basin that was investigated in detail regarding its microplastic pollution.

The spread of microplastics in rivers showed that along a given waterway there are sources as well as sinks. Thus, dams and reservoirs constitute important but until now hardly investigated parts of a water system that serve as examples for risk vs. usefulness of sedimentation of microplastics.

This project systematically detected emissions of plastics into wastewater from relevant industries. Emissions levels were analysed along all points of the value chain (production, transport, processing, and cleaning of synthetic materials).

The REPLAWA project covered questions of water resource protection in connection with wastewater treatment. The project investigated and quantitatively assessed entry points into water bodies through treatment plants, storm water drainage, and combined sewer overflows as well as swales at treatment facilities and in sewage sludge.

The aim of the project was to develop concepts and preliminary planning for the implementation of an infrastructure for the collection, ship-based treatment, and marketing of plastic waste in order to reduce the input of plastic waste into the environment and marine ecosystems. The project's target regions were primarily less developed countries in the Global South.