PLASTOX - Direct and indirect ecotoxicological impacts of microplastics on marine organisms

JPI Healthy and Productive Seas and Oceans (JPI-OCEANS) project.

Abstract

The PLASTOX project will investigate the ingestion, food- web transfer, and ecotoxicological impact of microplastics, together with persistent organic pollutants (POPs), metals and plastic additive chemicals associated with them, on key European marine species and ecosystems. It will also study the temporal dynamics of microplastics colonisation by microbial communities in the field and the influence of microbial biofilms on ingestion rates and POP toxicity. The influence of microplastics physicochemical properties (size, shape, surface area and composition) on these processes will be evaluated. PLASTOX will combine field-based observations, laboratory tests, mesocosm and manipulative field experiments to study the ecological effects of microplastics.


Durata del progetto/Project duration

2016 - 2018

Unibo Team Leader

Laura Airoldi

Responsabile scientifico per il Dipartimento

Giulio Zanaroli

Altri dipartimenti coinvolti

Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche ed Ambientali (BiGeA)

Coordinator

Andy Booth, SINTEF (Norway)

Partnership

  • SINTEF (Norway)
  • Technische Universität Darmstadt (Germany)
  • AIX-MARSEILLE UNIVERSITE (France)
  • Wageningen UR (The Netherlands)
  • IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute (Sweden)
  • Alma Mater Studiorum - University of Bologna (Italy)
  • The Norwegian Polar Institute (Norway)
  • NOVA.ID FCT (Portugal)
  • National University of Ireland Galway (Ireland)
  • Norwegian University of Science and Technology (Norway)
  • Norwegian Institute of Air Research (Norway)
  • Ghent University (Belgium)

Finanziamento/Contribution/Budget

Euro 3 624 000

Sito web

https://www.sintef.no/projectweb/plastox/