Tackling Marine Plastic Pollution Through Source-To-Sea Approach and Circular Economy

Abstract

Marine litter and associated marine pollution are becoming a complex global environmental hazard these days. Among the different faces of marine pollution, by far the largest and probably the most dangerous part is marine plastic litter. Plastic litter can be found in almost every marine environment in the world, including deep ocean beds and frozen polar ice. Unless new sustainable methods of plastic production and waste management are encouraged, marine plastic pollution will continue to pose a severe threat to the natural ecosystems of the world. In this paper, the status of marine plastic litter is reviewed using a DPSIR framework, and it is found that significant changes in the way we live and consume are needed to prevent it. A framework that combines the source-to-sea approach and circular economy is introduced as a possible solution to eliminate plastic waste from the environment as well as from the economy.