Roadmap for Long-Term Macroplastic Monitoring in Rivers
Macroplastic pollution in and around rivers negatively impacts human livelihood, and aquatic ecosystems. Monitoring data are crucial for better understanding and quantifying this problem, and for the design of effective intervention strategies. However, current monitoring efforts are often of short...
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Format: | Article |
Language: | English |
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2022-02-01
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Series: | Frontiers in Environmental Science |
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Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2021.802245/full |
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author | Tim van Emmerik Paul Vriend Paul Vriend Eric Copius Peereboom |
author_facet | Tim van Emmerik Paul Vriend Paul Vriend Eric Copius Peereboom |
author_sort | Tim van Emmerik |
collection | DOAJ |
description | Macroplastic pollution in and around rivers negatively impacts human livelihood, and aquatic ecosystems. Monitoring data are crucial for better understanding and quantifying this problem, and for the design of effective intervention strategies. However, current monitoring efforts are often of short duration, or study single river compartments. We present a “Roadmap” to overcome the challenges related to the design and implementation of long-term riverine macroplastic monitoring strategies. This “Roadmap” can help accelerating the process of achieving structural monitoring through providing a stepwise approach, which links monitoring goals and research questions to the data and methods required to answer them. We identify four monitoring goals: 1) policy, 2) knowledge development, 3) operations, and 4) solutions. Linked to these, we provide a non-exhaustive list of 12 globally common research questions that are important to answer to reach these goals. The “Roadmap” takes these questions and links them to development levels of monitoring methods for each river compartment: 1) method development, 2) baseline assessment, and 3) long-term monitoring. At each level, specific questions can only be answered if the level is achieved for specific river compartments. For questions at higher levels, the previous levels need to be achieved first. This creates a clear stepwise approach to solve open challenges. With the “Roadmap”, we provide a new tool to support decision-making and planning of specific projects by policy makers. The “Roadmap” is a clear and stepwise, yet flexible framework that allows to add and remove elements based on new insights, available resources, and other relevant changes. |
first_indexed | 2024-12-24T01:01:13Z |
format | Article |
id | doaj.art-962aa75ca4044d4395878f2bb343c0f1 |
institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
issn | 2296-665X |
language | English |
last_indexed | 2024-12-24T01:01:13Z |
publishDate | 2022-02-01 |
publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
record_format | Article |
series | Frontiers in Environmental Science |
spelling | doaj.art-962aa75ca4044d4395878f2bb343c0f12022-12-21T17:23:21ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Environmental Science2296-665X2022-02-01910.3389/fenvs.2021.802245802245Roadmap for Long-Term Macroplastic Monitoring in RiversTim van Emmerik0Paul Vriend1Paul Vriend2Eric Copius Peereboom3Hydrology and Quantitative Water Management Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, NetherlandsHydrology and Quantitative Water Management Group, Wageningen University, Wageningen, NetherlandsMinistry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management, Utrecht, NetherlandsMinistry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Directorate-General for Public Works and Water Management, Utrecht, NetherlandsMacroplastic pollution in and around rivers negatively impacts human livelihood, and aquatic ecosystems. Monitoring data are crucial for better understanding and quantifying this problem, and for the design of effective intervention strategies. However, current monitoring efforts are often of short duration, or study single river compartments. We present a “Roadmap” to overcome the challenges related to the design and implementation of long-term riverine macroplastic monitoring strategies. This “Roadmap” can help accelerating the process of achieving structural monitoring through providing a stepwise approach, which links monitoring goals and research questions to the data and methods required to answer them. We identify four monitoring goals: 1) policy, 2) knowledge development, 3) operations, and 4) solutions. Linked to these, we provide a non-exhaustive list of 12 globally common research questions that are important to answer to reach these goals. The “Roadmap” takes these questions and links them to development levels of monitoring methods for each river compartment: 1) method development, 2) baseline assessment, and 3) long-term monitoring. At each level, specific questions can only be answered if the level is achieved for specific river compartments. For questions at higher levels, the previous levels need to be achieved first. This creates a clear stepwise approach to solve open challenges. With the “Roadmap”, we provide a new tool to support decision-making and planning of specific projects by policy makers. The “Roadmap” is a clear and stepwise, yet flexible framework that allows to add and remove elements based on new insights, available resources, and other relevant changes.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2021.802245/fulllitterwaterpollutiondata collectionhydrologymarine debris |
spellingShingle | Tim van Emmerik Paul Vriend Paul Vriend Eric Copius Peereboom Roadmap for Long-Term Macroplastic Monitoring in Rivers Frontiers in Environmental Science litter water pollution data collection hydrology marine debris |
title | Roadmap for Long-Term Macroplastic Monitoring in Rivers |
title_full | Roadmap for Long-Term Macroplastic Monitoring in Rivers |
title_fullStr | Roadmap for Long-Term Macroplastic Monitoring in Rivers |
title_full_unstemmed | Roadmap for Long-Term Macroplastic Monitoring in Rivers |
title_short | Roadmap for Long-Term Macroplastic Monitoring in Rivers |
title_sort | roadmap for long term macroplastic monitoring in rivers |
topic | litter water pollution data collection hydrology marine debris |
url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fenvs.2021.802245/full |
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