PLASTIC POLLUTION
SHARKs &RAys
Mission
We are committed to marine conservation by combining sailing, science and education in order to find solutions and strengthen awareness
Expeditions 2021
ligurian-tyrrhenian sea​
Leg 1: 29.may-4.june
Leg 2: 5.june-11.june
are you between 18 and 30 years old? then join us!
SPECIAL
EXPEDITION
The Mediterranean Basin is the cradle of world civilization and a huge and sensitive ecosystem of marine biodiversity.
Today about 320 million tourists spend their holidays at the Mediterranean Sea annually. This tourism creates a 40% increase in marine litter during the summer period above and beyond the 208-760 kg of solid urban waste produced annually by the 150 million people living by the Mediterranean basin.
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This expedition is part of a 10 years monitoring project, which started in 2018. We would like to evaluate if there are any changes which can be detected with regard to the quantity and spatial and temporal distribution of microplastics found in the area(s).
The Azores are a remote group of islands in the Atlantic at the very edge of the North Atlantic Gyre.
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This expedition will be the second of its kind and a follow up expedition to our expedition in 2019, which was the first one ever that has been conducted in the Azores, allowing us to predict and monitor the amount of microplastics in this remote area.
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In order to obtain the most accurate picture possible, detailed data on the quantity and composition of the materials found there is needed.
sicily
Leg 1: 11.-17.SEPTEMBER
Leg 2: 18.-24.SEPTEMBER
Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 20 regions of Italy. North of Sicily lie the Aeolian Islands, a volcanic archipelago in the Tyrrhenian Sea named after the demigod of the winds Aeolus.
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This expedition is a collaboration with the Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn. We will collect surface water microplastic samples around the Aeolien islands for the very first time and combine the data with fish ingested microplastic data collected by the marine researchers from Anton Dohrn to see the connection between the microplastic floating and the impact it has on the ecosystem.
