Probabilistic model for plastic clean-up techs

Plastic pollution is widespread, and its consequences are of great concern. As a major source of plastic litter in the ocean is produced inland and transported via inland waterways, more than 70 plastic clean-up technologies have been created, to date, to remove plastic and prevent its flux to the sea. The primary aim of these innovative technologies is to collect plastic efficiently. However, organisms and organic material, which have key roles in ecosystems such as rivers and estuaries, might be caught unintentionally. To date, there is a lack of guidelines for deploying and using these technologies, and an objective tool to quantify and assess their bycatch is missing. This project, funded by the Research Foundation Flanders - FWO (application numbers: 1S13522N/1S13524N), aims to create a probabilistic model as the initial step towards a decision framework for plastic clean-up technologies. The aim is to develop a tool to assist policymakers and users in selecting the technological mechanism that, based on the location characteristics, will collect plastic with the least unwanted impact on the environment.