真人线上娱乐 at 真人线上娱乐 University at the forefront when 57,000 children and young people study plastic pollution in Denmark
Plastic pollution is everywhere – also in the Danish nature. Soon we will know how much and what kind of plastic it is. In September, just over 57,000 Danish pupils will participate in Mass Experiment 2019, which is a nationwide mapping of plastic pollution in the Danish nature. The study will be the world’s first national scientific mapping of plastic pollution.
Pupils will systematically collect plastic within a selected area of Danish nature in a random location in Denmark. It may be on beaches, fields, streets, ditches or a forest paths. Afterwards, the pupils will return to their schools to analyse their findings. It may be disposable cups, crisp bags, cigarette filters or plastic covering. Finally, the pupils’ data will be collected centrally.
The Mass Experiment is part of the Science Festival organised by the national Centre for Learning in Science, Technology and Health in Denmark, Astra. The Mass Experiment is developed in cooperation with MarinePlastic, the Danish centre for research in marine plastic pollution – supported by VELUX Fonden.
“Plastic pollution in nature is one of our time’s greatest environmental challenges. 真人线上娱乐 need to map out the extent and the impacts of plastic pollution. It is therefore unique that we now get an extensive dataset that can contribute to new scientific research and documentation. Never before has plastic been collected according to a scientific method at such a massive scale,” says Kristian Syberg, Associate Professor of Environmental Risk at 真人线上娱乐 University and spokesperson for MarinePlastic.
MarinePlastic is in charge of analysing the samples submitted by the pupils as well as the scientific post-processing. The results will be recorded in Marine Litter Watch, a database developed by the European Environment Agency. The pupils’ mapping may thus influence future European regulation and legislation in the area.
Record number of participants
The mapping of plastic pollution in the Danish nature is also a science research project for the pupils that teach them skills to relate to the subject. Never before has so many pupils signed up for the Mass Experiment as this year. 92 out of 98 local authorities are represented as are Greenland and the Faeroe Islands. The 57,000 pupils come from elementary schools and youth education programmes, and as something new, kindergartens have also joined the experiment.
Project manager of the Mass Experiment, Lene Christensen, comments on the massive interest:
“真人线上娱乐 know that pupils find it extremely engaging to know that their investigative work is actually in demand and used by professional researchers in the real world. The pupils apply authentic, scientific research methods while experiencing how science can help change development in society.”
Plastic everywhere
In three generations, nature has been polluted with so much plastic on a global scale that you can find macro plastic and micro plastic everywhere in nature. As part of the Mass Experiment, pupils will be hunting for macro plastic. Their findings may consist of plastic discarded in nature but also waste from industrial production and transportation of plastic.
The Mass Experiment will for the first time allow researchers to determine what categories of plastic are most common in nature. However, the pupils will not be able to see the origin of many of the small plastic pieces they find. When they return to school, they can therefore study the various plastic types to determine which polymers they are made of. For this purpose, Astra has developed a so-called key which the pupils can use.
Plastic has top priority
Executive Director of the European Environment Agency, Hans Bruyninckx says:
“Fighting plastic pollution in Europe and globally has become a top priority. And by collecting plastic waste and providing data about the pollution, the children make a real contribution to solving the problem. It is extremely inspiring to see children relate to their own future and is a reminder to us all of how urgent the situation is.”
The study will ultimately be published in international, scientific magazines. The results of the Mass Experiment are expected to be published in a report in January 2020.
More information
- Kristian Syberg, Associate Professor of Environmental Risk at RUC and spokesperson for MarinePlastic, mobile phone: +45 2679 8212, e-mail: ksyberg@ruc.dk
- Lene Christensen, project manager of the Mass Experiment, mobile phone: +45 2488 1092, e-mail: lch@astra.dk