Risks and Solutions: Marine Plastics in Southeast Asia - RaSP-SEA

塑料泄漏到环境中的存在和程度是一个巨大的系统故障，威胁着海洋生态系统，并在全球范围内造成物理和化学污染。据估计，每年有1200万吨塑料进入海洋，这已迅速成为全球关注的问题。这种塑料污染每年造成的经济损失约为130亿美元，原因是环境退化、旅游业收入损失以及清理和修复费用。这对人类的福祉有相关的影响。这在东南亚地区是一个特别的问题，该地区具有重要的生态、经济和保护意义，具有很高的特有物种水平。这种独特的生物多样性的健康很重要，因为它支持各种生计，并为大量人口提供粮食安全，其中许多人生活在贫困线以下。东南亚已被确定为世界上第三大管理不善的塑料垃圾产生地。如果不做出重大努力来管理这一问题，到2060年，塑料垃圾投入可能会翻一番。这一挑战需要一种区域规模的方法，允许环境、经济、技术和社会学科结合在一起，以建立对导致这一问题的许多因素及其潜在影响的理解，并确定如何解决它。我们的网络与每个国家的研究机构、国家公园管理人员和环境部有着密切的关系。我们的愿景是减少东南亚地区的塑料泄漏，支持塑料可持续循环经济体系的发展。我们提出了一个综合的、多学科的项目，有三个核心目标。我们将确定塑料污染的来源和驱动因素，包括整个区域塑料废物流动的地图和生命周期，以及它在海洋环境中的移动方式。其次，我们将确定目前遍布该地区的塑料污染水平对经济、生态、健康和福祉的关键影响。第三，我们将实施和探索减轻和减少塑料污染的干预措施，并帮助该地区向循环塑料方法迈进。由于我们已经在与该地区的利益攸关方合作，我们已经有一些共同设计的干预措施准备立即测试。这些创新从帮助简化对基于新技术的清理行动的监测，到试验一项以社区为基础的创新计划来回收渔网。为了确保研究取得最大影响，该联盟的合作伙伴包括在与该地区沿海社区接触方面拥有丰富经验的东南亚非政府组织，以及英国和东南亚大学之间的平等合作伙伴关系，以通过合作和培训发展当地的研究能力。

The presence and extent of plastic leaking into the environment is a system failure of monumental proportion that threatens the marine ecosystem and causes physical and chemical contamination at a global scale. It is estimated that 12 million tonnes of plastic enter the oceans each year and this has rapidly become a global concern. The economic damage of this plastic pollution amounts to around USD13 billion per annum due to degraded environments, loss of revenue from tourism, and costs of clean up and repair. This has associated impacts on human well-being. This is a particular issue in the Southeast Asian region, which is an area of great ecological, economic, and conservation importance, with high levels of endemic species. The health of this unique biodiversity is important, because it supports a variety of livelihoods and provides food security for large populations, many of whom live below the poverty line. SE Asia has been identified as the third largest regional generator of mismanaged plastic waste in the world. If no significant efforts are made to manage this, plastic waste inputs could double by 2060.This challenge requires a regional scale approach that allows environmental, economic, technical, and social disciplines to come together to build understanding of the many factors contributing to the problem, its potential impacts, and identify how it can be solved. Our network has strong relationships with Research Institutions, National Park managers, and Environment Ministries in each country. Our vision is to reduce plastic leakage in the Southeast Asian region, supporting development of a sustainable, circular economic system for plastics. We propose an integrated, multidisciplinary project with three core aims. We will establish the sources and drivers of plastic pollution including the mapping and life cycle of plastic waste flows across the region and how it moves once in the marine environment. Secondly, we will identify the key economic, ecological, and health and wellbeing impacts of the current levels of plastic pollution that pervades this region. Thirdly, we will implement and explore interventions to mitigate and reduce plastic pollution and help progress the region to circular approaches to plastic.As we are already working with stakeholders in the region, we have some co-designed interventions ready to test immediately. These innovations range from helping streamline the monitoring of novel-technology based clean-up operations to trialling an innovative community-based scheme to recycle fishing nets. To ensure the research achieves maximum impact, the consortium partners include Southeast Asian NGOs with extensive experience of engaging coastal communities in the region and equal partnerships between UK and Southeast Asian universities to develop local research capacity through collaboration and training.