PLASTIC BUSTERS

Over a 4-year period, the Plastic Busters MPAs project will address the entire management cycle of marine litter, from monitoring and assessment to prevention and mitigation. The project also includes actions to strengthen networking between pelagic and coastal marine protected areas (CMPAs) located in Albania, Croatia, Greece, Italy, France and Spain. The results and achievements are planned to be expanded to the Mediterranean basin at large.

A series of concrete prevention and mitigation actions are to be developed, tested and promoted during the project in several pilot areas in the Mediterranean basin. These include: fishing for litter; removing and collecting derelict fishing gear; establishing recycling mechanisms such as the Healthy Seas Initiative; and establishing return/deposit systems for packaging. Following life-cycle thinking and a circular-economy approach, the project will also carry out systemic evaluations of feasibility, reliability and sustainability, while involving relevant stakeholders such as port authorities, fishermen and municipalities.

The project further foresees a wide range of actions to enhance the awareness of stakeholders and promote change in their perceptions and attitudes towards waste. The label granted by the UfM recognises the urgency of the need to work together towards a shared and coordinated regional approach, in order to provide regional actions and solutions to this common problem.