A Horizon Scan of research priorities to inform policies aimed at reducing the harm of plastic pollution to biota

J F Provencher; M Liboiron; S B Borrelle; A L Bond; C Rochman; J L Lavers; S Avery-Gomm; R Yamashita; P G Ryan; A L Lusher; S Hammer; H Bradshaw; J Khan; M L Mallory

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139381

A Horizon Scan of research priorities to inform policies aimed at reducing the harm of plastic pollution to biota

Sci Total Environ. 2020 Sep 1:733:139381. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139381. Epub 2020 May 13.

Authors

J F Provencher¹, M Liboiron², S B Borrelle³, A L Bond⁴, C Rochman⁵, J L Lavers⁶, S Avery-Gomm⁷, R Yamashita⁸, P G Ryan⁹, A L Lusher¹⁰, S Hammer¹¹, H Bradshaw¹², J Khan¹³, M L Mallory¹⁴

Affiliations

¹ Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 351 Boulevard Saint-Joseph, Gatineau, Quebec J8Y 3Z5, Canada. Electronic address: Jennifer.provencher@canada.ca.
² Department of Geography, Memorial University, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador A1B 3X9, Canada. Electronic address: mliboiron@mun.ca.
³ Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3B2, Canada; David H. Smith Conservation Research Program, Society for Conservation Biology, Washington, DC, USA.
⁴ Bird Group, Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, Akeman Street, Tring, Hertfordshire HP23 6AP, United Kingdom; Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Battery Point, Tasmania 7004, Australia. Electronic address: a.bond@nhm.ac.uk.
⁵ Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3B2, Canada. Electronic address: chelsea.rochman@utoronto.ca.
⁶ Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, Battery Point, Tasmania 7004, Australia. Electronic address: Jennifer.Lavers@utas.edu.au.
⁷ Science and Technology Branch, Environment and Climate Change Canada, National Wildlife Research Centre, 1125 Colonel By Drive, Ottawa, Ontario K1S 5B6, Canada; School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Queensland 4072, Australia. Electronic address: Stephanie.Avery-Gomm@canada.ca.
⁸ Atmosphere and Ocean Research Institute, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5, Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8564, Japan. Electronic address: ryamashita@aori.u-tokyo.ac.jp.
⁹ FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa.
¹⁰ Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA), Gaustadalléen 21, NO-0349 Oslo, Norway. Electronic address: amy.lusher@niva.no.
¹¹ Environment Agency, Traðagøta 38, FO-165 Argir, Faroe Islands. Electronic address: sjurdur@hammer.fo.
¹² Program in Environmental Sciences, Memorial University, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador A1B 3X9, Canada. Electronic address: heb176@mun.ca.
¹³ Canadian Wildlife Service, Environment and Climate Change Canada, 351 Boulevard Saint-Joseph, Gatineau, Quebec J8Y 3Z5, Canada.
¹⁴ Department of Biology, Acadia University, 33 Westwood Ave, Wolfville, Nova Scotia B4P 2R6, Canada. Electronic address: mark.mallory@acadiau.ca.

PMID: 32446089
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.139381

Abstract

Plastic pollution in the oceans is a priority environmental issue. The recent increase in research on the topic, coupled with growing public awareness, has catalyzed policymakers around the world to identify and implement solutions that minimize the harm caused by plastic pollution. To aid and coordinate these efforts, we surveyed experts with scientific experience identified through their peer-reviewed publications. We asked experts about the most pressing research questions relating to how biota interact with plastic pollution that in turn can inform policy decisions and research agendas to best contribute to understanding and reducing the harm of plastic pollution to biota. We used a modified Horizon Scan method that first used a subgroup of experts to generate 46 research questions on aquatic biota and plastics, and then conducted an online survey of researchers globally to prioritize questions in terms of their importance to inform policy development. One hundred and fifteen experts from 29 countries ranked research questions in six themes. The questions were ranked by urgency, indicating which research should be addressed immediately, which can be addressed later, and which are of limited relevance to inform action on plastics as an environmental pollutant. We found that questions relating to the following four themes were the most commonly top-ranked research priorities: (i) sources, circulation and distribution of plastics, (ii) type of harm from plastics, (iii) detection of ingested plastics and the associated problems, and (iv) related economies and policy to ingested plastics. While there are many research questions on the topic of impacts of plastic pollution on biota that could be funded and investigated, our results focus collective priorities in terms of research that experts believe will inform effective policy and on-the-ground conservation.

Keywords: Expert opinion; Marine debris; Plastic pollution; Policy; Prioritization.

MeSH terms

Biota
Environmental Monitoring
Environmental Pollution
Oceans and Seas
Plastics*
Water Pollutants, Chemical / analysis*

Substances

Plastics
Water Pollutants, Chemical