The unaccountability case of plastic pellet pollution

Plastic preproduction pellets are found in environmental samples all over the world and their presence is often linked to spills during production and transportation. To better understand how these pellets end up in the environment we assessed the release of plastic pellets from a polyethylene produ...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine pollution bulletin 2018-04, Vol.129 (1), p.52-60
Main Authors: Karlsson, Therese M., Arneborg, Lars, Broström, Göran, Almroth, Bethanie Carney, Gipperth, Lena, Hassellöv, Martin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Case studies
Drifters
Environmental Monitoring - legislation & jurisprudence
Environmental Monitoring - methods
Environmental Sciences
Frameworks
Government Regulation
Juridik och samhälle
Law and Society
Marine pollution
Microplastics
Miljövetenskap
Pellet distribution
Pellets
Plastic pollution
Plastics
Plastics - analysis
Policy recommendations
Pollution
Pollution effects
Polyethylene
Polyethylenes
Polymers
Spills
Sweden
Transportation
Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis
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Summary:Plastic preproduction pellets are found in environmental samples all over the world and their presence is often linked to spills during production and transportation. To better understand how these pellets end up in the environment we assessed the release of plastic pellets from a polyethylene production site in a case study area on the Swedish west coast. The case study encompasses; field measurements to evaluate the level of pollution and pathways, models and drifters to investigate the potential spread and a revision of the legal framework and the company permits. This case study show that millions of pellets are released from the production site annually but also that there are national and international legal frameworks that if implemented could help prevent these spills. Bearing in mind the negative effects observed by plastic pollution there is an urgent need to increase the responsibility and accountability of these spills. [Display omitted] •Millions of pellets enter surrounding waterways from the production site annually.•Plastic spills also occur during transport, storage, loading and cleaning.•The main pollution is local but long-range transport may also be possible.•There is a regulatory framework that could to a high degree prevent these event.•The authors call for a higher accountability through control programs.
ISSN:0025-326X
1879-3363
DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.01.041