Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Plastic impacts on Ocean's biogeochemical cycles in the Anthropocene

Project description

Study throws light on how microplastics affect the oceans’ biogeochemical cycles

Plastic pollution is an increasingly present threat to marine ecosystems. When microscopic particles (microplastics) are discarded into waterways, they can interact with microbial communities and alter their distribution and activity. In addition, they can perturb the biogeochemical cycling events in which microbes participate. The EU-funded PLOCEAN project will combine field observations and theoretical studies to investigate how microplastics affect the microbes’ ability to transform organic compounds. The project will use cutting-edge polymer characterisation and metagenomics techniques to study plastic-specific microbial communities, their contribution to organic particles' ageing and their interaction with organic matrices. An important part of the work will be devoted to outreach activities and citizen science.

Objective

The long-term accumulation of plastic in our ocean has become a global challenge. Microplastics, and particularly those < 300 µm, are ubiquitous and persistent and get entangled in microbial organic matrices that change particles’ buoyancy, aging, and determine their bioavailability in the water for being ingested. Microplastics’ interaction with microorganisms may also change microbial communities distribution and activity, possibly perturbing biogeochemical cycles at the basis of marine ecosystems and food webs. Through primary production the ocean absorbs and converts atmospheric carbon dioxide into organic matter, further channelled to higher trophic levels by its incorporation into bacterial biomass, and thus provides up to 70% of the oxygen for life. PLOCEAN focuses on how microplastics interact with the microbial mechanisms of production and transformation of organic matter to address important research priorities: 1) plastic sources and distribution in marine environments; 2) biogeochemical processes driving plastics’ aging, transport and bioavailability affecting fish stocks and human consumption; and 3) the role of plastic in marine biogeochemical cycles that may determine changes in carbon turnover, nutrients cycling and primary productivity in coastal areas. PLOCEAN will combine field observations and laboratory studies applying the latest developments in research techniques: polymer characterization and metagenomics to study plastic-specific microbial communities, microbial contribution to particles' aging and interaction with organic matrices. PLOCEAN will also devote an important aspect to outreach and citizen science. The multi-disciplinary approach and the research questions addressed will contribute to fill knowledge gaps in the current understanding of environmental plastic fluxes, distribution, as well as impacts on biotic and abiotic marine compartments that affect biogeochemical processes behind marine ecosystem’s food webs and functioning.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2019

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

HELMHOLTZ-ZENTRUM FUR OZEANFORSCHUNG KIEL (GEOMAR)
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 264 669,12
Address
WISCHHOFSTRASSE 1-3
24148 Kiel
Germany

See on map

Region
Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein Kiel, Kreisfreie Stadt
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 264 669,12

Partners (1)

My booklet 0 0