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Microplastic Research and Preventative Measures at the US Environmental Protection Agency
Citation:
Ho, K. AND R. Burgess. Microplastic Research and Preventative Measures at the US Environmental Protection Agency. The Science of Microplastics in the World Ocean, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, October 15 - 18, 2019.
Impact/Purpose:
This presentation will be at workshop attended by international and national microplastic experts from a variety of government, academia, non-profit and industry groups. This presentation will allow other microplastic researchers to understand the microplastic research and litter initiatives currently ongoing and proposed by the US EPA and allow for collaborative planning among national and international researchers to define research gaps and useful steps forward.
Description:
This presentation will summarize microplastics-related research currently being performed at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It will include research initiated by EPA Regions, exploratory research currently ongoing with micro/nanoplastics, and Regional and Office of Water initiatives underway to reduce marine litter and debris. In addition, it will outline proposed research by EPA’s Office of Research and Development scheduled to begin in FY2020. Currently, the overall goal of Agency microplastic-related research is to develop or validate methods for the measurements of plastics in different environmental media (e.g., water, sediments, tissues). Future research may explore the adverse effects of microplastics on human and ecological endpoints.