[Marijana Baltic]

Here is a short summary of the project idea. We already made a project concept and are looking for partnership consortium.

OBJECTIVE: Bring innovative approaches for reduction and elimination of marine pollution to secure a sustainable future to Mediterranean’s wildlife and people

PROBLEMS WE IDENTIFIED:
a) Main problem: Marine plastic pollution has great economic and societal repercussions. Every year, 0.57 million tons of plastic enter Mediterranean waters – the equivalent of dumping 33,800 plastic bottles into the sea every minute. Plastic pollution will keep growing, with plastic waste generation in the region expected to quadruple by 2050.
b) Consequences:
– The Mediterranean Sea is home to amazing wildlife. There is urge need to recover and stabilize populations of key species right across the Mediterranean to maintain their ecological, economic and cultural value for future generations.
– Microplastics and the toxic contaminants that attach to sea animals are accumulating within marine food chains and affecting a large range of marine species with worrying health consequences for them and for people who eat seafood (134 Mediterranean species are known to have ingested plastic, including 60 species of fish, all 3 species of sea turtle, 9 species of seabird and 5 species of marine mammal).
– Impact on tourism – when tourists are no longer willing to visit, due to plastic litter on beaches. In order to avoid this impact, beach clean-up costs need to be incurred. These, and other factors, are costs associated with marine plastic pollution.

PROPOSED SOLUTIONS/ACTIVITIES OF THE PROJECT:
• Joint research on marine litter (microplastic) in coherence with biodiversity, health and economic lost in the Mediterranean countries within the project consortium
• Comparison of analysis results
• Creation of measures and guidelines for reducing marine waste
• Signing joint declaration / protocol / strategy on the reduction of marine waste
• Enactment of local/regional policies and measures on marine pollution
• Pilot project in the focus area (cleaning of an island, bay, installation of artificial reefs, etc.)
• Exchange of experience and replication of models from other countries
• Awareness campaign
• Education, etc.

THE PRIORITY: Greener Mediterranean
THE MISSION: Natural heritage: Protecting, restoring and valorizing the natural environment and heritage
SPECIFIC OBJECTIVE: SO 2.7 “Enhancing protection and conservation of nature, biodiversity and green infrastructure including in urban areas and reducing all forms of pollution”
TOPIC: Waste prevention and reduction
FOCUS: Prevention and reduction of all waste related pressures on the natural heritage
TARGET GROUP: public authorities, institutions or relevant territorial associations, mariculture sector stakeholders, Interest groups including NGOs, local community

Capitalization of previous projects and operations:
• PlasticBusters MPAs: Plastic Busters: preserving biodiversity from plastics in Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas
• eWAsTER: Preventing e-waste from polluting MED water by turning waste into a resource.
• ARTEMIS: Accelerating the Restoration of Seagrass Meadows in the Mediterranean area through Innovative ecosystem-service based Solutions
• ACT4LITTER: Joint measures to preserve natural ecosystems from marine litter in the Mediterranean Protected Areas
• AMAre: Actions for Marine Protected Areas
• AMAre PLUS: Action for Marine Protected Areas PLUS
• Biodiversity Protection: Mainstreaming biodiversity management efforts for environmental sustainability
• BLUEISLANDS: Seasonal variation of waste as effect of tourism
• POSBEMED: Sustainable management of the systems Posidonia-beaches in the Mediterranean region
• POSBEMED2: Governance and management of Posidonia beach- dune systems across the Mediterranean
• TUNE UP: Promoting multilevel governance for tuning up biodiversity protection in marine areas

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