Expertise

I am a researcher working at complementary aspects of (micro)plastic pollution in the environment. For many years I have explored environmental fates of plastics in the sea. Now I focus on their potential as markers of the Anthropocene epoch, still to be formalized in the geological time scale.

The LABPLAS project

I am a member of the LABPLAS consortium, a comprehensive collective effort of 20 groups from 16 organisations, encompassing broad and complementary expertise. We aim to provide European authorities with the prenormative knowledge needed to fight plastic pollution on solid scientific grounds. The ambitious and overarching objective of LABPLAS is understanding the sources, transport, distribution and impacts of plastic pollution in a range of environmental compartments (freshwater, marine, terrestrial, atmosphere and aquatic biota) by applying technological advances (sampling, analysis, quantification), promoting truly biodegradable novel materials where appropriate, developing innovative and up-scalable models (for assessing the fate, effects and risks of plastics), and presenting results for decision making.

The Anthropocene Working Group (AWG)

Since 2015 I am a member of the Anthropocene Working Group (AWG), a component body of the Subcommission on Quaternary Stratigraphy (SQS) which is itself a constituent body of the International Commission on Stratigraphy (ICS). The AWG works to officially propose the addition of the Anthropocene epoch in the geological time scale. For more information please access: http://quaternary.stratigraphy.org/working-groups/anthropocene/