Reducing plastic waste in the Galapagos Islands and Eastern Pacific, Environmental Sciences, Marine Biology, Conservation - PhD (Funded)

Academic Supervisors 

Professor Tamara Galloway, University of Exeter

Dr Ceri Lewis, University of Exeter

Project Description

Background

Plastic waste leaking into the environment is a system failure of monumental proportions, which threatens the marine ecosystem and causes physical and chemical contamination on a global scale. The Galapagos Archipelago and Eastern Pacific Ocean are of great ecological, economic and conservation importance, home to unique species found nowhere else on earth. Around 45% of all plastic used along the Eastern Pacific coastline is inadequately managed, generating over 1 million tonnes of plastic waste, a figure predicted to double by 2025 if no action is taken. Plastic debris pollutes many of the region’s coastal habitats, and microplastics and microfibers have been identified contaminating the marine food web [1].

At the University of Exeter, we have been studying the impacts of plastic waste in the Galapagos and  how Circular Economy approaches (e.g. recycling, redesigning, replacing) can reduce these impacts through a £3.5 million project funded by the Global Challenges Research Fund: ‘Pacific Plastics: Science to Solutions’ https://www.pacificplasticssciencetosolutions.com/ . Working alongside this project will offer you unique opportunities for collaboration with local stakeholders and researchers and access to study sites, including within the Galapagos Marine Reserve.

Research questions

How do interventions designed to minimise plastic litter affect the marine environment of Galapagos and the Eastern Pacific? Which habitats and species are most vulnerable to plastic litter and how do they respond to change?

Specific objectives