Moving from symptom management to upstream plastics prevention: The fallacy of plastic cleanup technology

Plastic removal technologies can temporarily mitigate plastic accumulation at local scales, but evidence-based criteria are needed in policies to ensure that they are feasible and that ecological benefits outweigh the costs. To reduce plastic pollution efficiently and economically, policy should prioritize regulating and reducing upstream production rather than downstream pollution cleanup. Plastic removal technologies can temporarily mitigate plastic accumulation at local scales, but evidence-based criteria are needed in policies to ensure that they are feasible and that ecological benefits outweigh the costs. To reduce plastic pollution efficiently and economically, policy should prioritize regulating and reducing upstream production rather than downstream pollution cleanup. Plastic pollution accumulates in all environments, from the highest mountains to the deepest oceans.1Tekman M.B. Walther B.A. Peter C. Gutow L. Bergmann M. Impacts of Plastic Pollution in the Oceans on Marine Species, Biodiversity and Ecosystems.2022https://zenodo.org/record/5898684#.YjRGUzUxl6XGoogle Scholar Production is projected to triple by 2060, with plastic pollution increasing correspondingly under business-as-usual scenarios.1Tekman M.B. Walther B.A. Peter C. Gutow L. Bergmann M. Impacts of Plastic Pollution in the Oceans on Marine Species, Biodiversity and Ecosystems.2022https://zenodo.org/record/5898684#.YjRGUzUxl6XGoogle Scholar Plastics and other chemical pollutants are already outside the safe operating space for humanity, threatening critical Earth system processes related to climate and biodiversity, causing adverse impacts on human health, organisms, ecosystems, and biogeochemical cycles.2Persson L. Carney Almroth B.M. Collins C.D. Cornell S. de Wit C.A. Diamond M.L. Fantke P. Hassellöv M. MacLeod M. Ryberg M.W. et al.Outside the Safe Operating Space of the Planetary Boundary for Novel Entities.Environ. Sci. Technol. 2022; 56: 1510-1521https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c04158Crossref PubMed Scopus (340) Google Scholar In response, the UN Environment Assembly adopted a resolution (UNEP/EA.5/Res.14) to develop a Plastics Treaty by 2024. As the treaty negotiations progress, stakeholders debate how to prioritize different solutions including the prevention, reduction, management, and removal of plastics. From a scientific perspective, measures to reduce the production and consumption of virgin plastics are key to minimizing global pollution efficiently and economically,3Lau W.W.Y. Shiran Y. Bailey R.M. Cook E. Stuchtey M.R. Koskella J. Velis C.A. Godfrey L. Boucher J. Murphy M.B. et al.Evaluating scenarios toward zero plastic pollution.Science. 2020; 369: 1455-1461https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aba9475Crossref PubMed Google Scholar yet scenario studies show that even if all available measures are implemented, the growth in plastics production will be too high to prevent further pollution entirely.3Lau W.W.Y. Shiran Y. Bailey R.M. Cook E. Stuchtey M.R. Koskella J. Velis C.A. Godfrey L. Boucher J. Murphy M.B. et al.Evaluating scenarios toward zero plastic pollution.Science. 2020; 369: 1455-1461https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aba9475Crossref PubMed Google Scholar Plastic removal technologies (PRTs), often framed as “cleanups,” have been developed to mitigate pollution.4Bellou N. Gambardella C. Karantzalos K. Monteiro J.G. Canning-Clode J. Kemna S. Arrieta-Giron C.A. Lemmen C. Global assessment of innovative solutions to tackle marine litter.Nat. Sustain. 2021; 4: 516-524https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00726-2Crossref Scopus (29) Google Scholar,5Falk-Andersson J. Larsen Haarr M. Havas V. Basic principles for development and implementation of plastic clean-up technologies: What can we learn from fisheries management?.Sci. Total Environ. 2020; 745141117https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141117Crossref PubMed Scopus (16) Google Scholar However, PRTs are associated with various concerns related to their technological challenges, environmental impacts, equity and justice, verifiability, market-based “greenwashing,” and distraction from more effective solutions.4Bellou N. Gambardella C. Karantzalos K. Monteiro J.G. Canning-Clode J. Kemna S. Arrieta-Giron C.A. Lemmen C. Global assessment of innovative solutions to tackle marine litter.Nat. Sustain. 2021; 4: 516-524https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00726-2Crossref Scopus (29) Google Scholar,5Falk-Andersson J. Larsen Haarr M. Havas V. Basic principles for development and implementation of plastic clean-up technologies: What can we learn from fisheries management?.Sci. Total Environ. 2020; 745141117https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141117Crossref PubMed Scopus (16) Google Scholar,6Leone G. Catarino A.I. Pauwels I. Mani T. Tishler M. Egger M. Forio M.A.E. Goethals P.L.M. Everaert G. Integrating Bayesian Belief Networks in a toolbox for decision support on plastic clean-up technologies in rivers and estuaries.Environ. Pollut. 2022; 296118721https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2021.118721Crossref PubMed Scopus (7) Google Scholar Verifiability relates to performance being scientifically proven. Questions of equity and justice relate to how they might allow the costs of polluting industries to be externalized onto communities with far less resources, agency, and responsibility for the design of hazardous and wasteful products and production levels. There are many lobbyists and advocates for the introduction of a new market for the sale of plastic offsets or plastic credits in relation to PRTs within the Plastics Treaty, analogous to the carbon credits’ market in the context of climate change mitigation and with similar concerns. Advocates from plastic-producing states, brokers seeking to sell PRTs, and PRT manufacturers have become increasingly vocal in arguing that PRTs should be enshrined in global policy. While PRTs could be necessary in some local cases, such as heavily polluted harbors, beaches, and rivers, in a global context, PRTs should not be enshrined in a treaty for purposes such as plastics offsetting. There is no evidence that the net benefits of PRTs outweigh their environmental and economic impacts outside highly polluted areas.4Bellou N. Gambardella C. Karantzalos K. Monteiro J.G. Canning-Clode J. Kemna S. Arrieta-Giron C.A. Lemmen C. Global assessment of innovative solutions to tackle marine litter.Nat. Sustain. 2021; 4: 516-524https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00726-2Crossref Scopus (29) Google Scholar,5Falk-Andersson J. Larsen Haarr M. Havas V. Basic principles for development and implementation of plastic clean-up technologies: What can we learn from fisheries management?.Sci. Total Environ. 2020; 745141117https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141117Crossref PubMed Scopus (16) Google Scholar,7Parker-Jurd F.N.F. Smith N.S. Gibson L. Nuojua S. Thompson R.C. Evaluating the performance of the ‘Seabin’ – A fixed point mechanical litter removal device for sheltered waters.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2022; 184114199https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114199Crossref PubMed Scopus (4) Google Scholar In this commentary, we address the feasibility and scalability of PRTs. First, we describe ecological impacts of different PRTs alongside ethical, political, and economic aspects. We argue that the priorities for the Plastics Treaty should sit higher up in the toxic-free, zero-waste hierarchy,8Simon J.M. A Zero Waste Hierarchy for Europe.2019https://zerowasteeurope.eu/2019/05/a-zero-waste-hierarchy-for-europe/Google Scholar focusing on prevention and reduction rather than cleanup (Figure 1). For necessary removal efforts, a science-based accreditation system should be in place to verify the effectiveness of PRTs and minimize regrettable outcomes. Removing plastics from the environment improves habitat quality and reduces the risk of interactions with biota, especially since growing amounts of plastic are estimated to break down into irretrievable smaller plastics that can be ingested by a wider range of species.1Tekman M.B. Walther B.A. Peter C. Gutow L. Bergmann M. Impacts of Plastic Pollution in the Oceans on Marine Species, Biodiversity and Ecosystems.2022https://zenodo.org/record/5898684#.YjRGUzUxl6XGoogle Scholar However, the ecological impacts of PRTs deserve attention, as they could affect biodiversity during collection and subsequent disposal in an era of accelerating extinction. Generally, unselective collection methods like sieving, raking, netting, or conveyors can alter habitats and trap organisms along with plastics, causing injury and bycatch mortality.4Bellou N. Gambardella C. Karantzalos K. Monteiro J.G. Canning-Clode J. Kemna S. Arrieta-Giron C.A. Lemmen C. Global assessment of innovative solutions to tackle marine litter.Nat. Sustain. 2021; 4: 516-524https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00726-2Crossref Scopus (29) Google Scholar,5Falk-Andersson J. Larsen Haarr M. Havas V. Basic principles for development and implementation of plastic clean-up technologies: What can we learn from fisheries management?.Sci. Total Environ. 2020; 745141117https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141117Crossref PubMed Scopus (16) Google Scholar,9Zielinski S. Botero C.M. Yanes A. To clean or not to clean? A critical review of beach cleaning methods and impacts.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2019; 139: 390-401https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.12.027Crossref PubMed Scopus (85) Google Scholar Manual collection selectively removes plastic but is labor-intensive and limited in scope. Currently, almost no environmental impacts assessments (EIAs) have been conducted for PRTs.4Bellou N. Gambardella C. Karantzalos K. Monteiro J.G. Canning-Clode J. Kemna S. Arrieta-Giron C.A. Lemmen C. Global assessment of innovative solutions to tackle marine litter.Nat. Sustain. 2021; 4: 516-524https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00726-2Crossref Scopus (29) Google Scholar,5Falk-Andersson J. Larsen Haarr M. Havas V. Basic principles for development and implementation of plastic clean-up technologies: What can we learn from fisheries management?.Sci. Total Environ. 2020; 745141117https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141117Crossref PubMed Scopus (16) Google Scholar Beaches in high-GDP (gross domestic product) states and tourist areas are regularly groomed by raking or sieving vehicles, claiming to protect ecosystems. However, beaches are important ecosystems with habitat-forming plants and sediment-dwelling animals that feed birds and fish. Regular grooming can alter these habitats at landscape scale and cause mortality or injury to dune plants and invertebrates.9Zielinski S. Botero C.M. Yanes A. To clean or not to clean? A critical review of beach cleaning methods and impacts.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2019; 139: 390-401https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.12.027Crossref PubMed Scopus (85) Google Scholar The concomitant removal of algal debris, which provide food and habitat for many animals, reduces beach biodiversity.9Zielinski S. Botero C.M. Yanes A. To clean or not to clean? A critical review of beach cleaning methods and impacts.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2019; 139: 390-401https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.12.027Crossref PubMed Scopus (85) Google Scholar Ironically, award-winning beaches are subject to more grooming and thus lower biodiversity.9Zielinski S. Botero C.M. Yanes A. To clean or not to clean? A critical review of beach cleaning methods and impacts.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2019; 139: 390-401https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.12.027Crossref PubMed Scopus (85) Google Scholar Regular grooming creates a biased public perception of low plastic pollution. Although it seems challenging to reconcile the demands of intensive tourism and conservation given economic priorities, policies favoring manual grooming, a lower grooming frequency, and exclusion of areas for recovery could relieve the pressure.9Zielinski S. Botero C.M. Yanes A. To clean or not to clean? A critical review of beach cleaning methods and impacts.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2019; 139: 390-401https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.12.027Crossref PubMed Scopus (85) Google Scholar Many harbors around the world use plastic-trapping technologies such as Seabins, which skim floating debris from the sea surface by pumping water into a bin device. A scientific evaluation showed that they capture trivial amounts of plastic (0.0059 kg day−1) but substantial quantities of seaweeds.7Parker-Jurd F.N.F. Smith N.S. Gibson L. Nuojua S. Thompson R.C. Evaluating the performance of the ‘Seabin’ – A fixed point mechanical litter removal device for sheltered waters.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2022; 184114199https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114199Crossref PubMed Scopus (4) Google Scholar For every four pieces of plastic, Seabins caught one organism, 73% of which were dead after two days. Five hundred Seabins would need to run continuously to keep a small harbor free of floating plastics.7Parker-Jurd F.N.F. Smith N.S. Gibson L. Nuojua S. Thompson R.C. Evaluating the performance of the ‘Seabin’ – A fixed point mechanical litter removal device for sheltered waters.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2022; 184114199https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114199Crossref PubMed Scopus (4) Google Scholar With maintenance costs orders of magnitude higher than manual cleaning, half of the users surveyed stopped using Seabins.7Parker-Jurd F.N.F. Smith N.S. Gibson L. Nuojua S. Thompson R.C. Evaluating the performance of the ‘Seabin’ – A fixed point mechanical litter removal device for sheltered waters.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2022; 184114199https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2022.114199Crossref PubMed Scopus (4) Google Scholar Rivers are important carriers and reservoirs of plastic pollution. Riverine organisms are therefore likely to be affected by plastics as their oceanic counterparts. At least forty different types of PRTs are used in rivers and estuaries comprising booms, watercraft vehicles, bubble curtains, or receptacles.6Leone G. Catarino A.I. Pauwels I. Mani T. Tishler M. Egger M. Forio M.A.E. Goethals P.L.M. Everaert G. Integrating Bayesian Belief Networks in a toolbox for decision support on plastic clean-up technologies in rivers and estuaries.Environ. Pollut. 2022; 296118721https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2021.118721Crossref PubMed Scopus (7) Google Scholar Bycatch is affected by factors such as hydrology, species traits, plastic properties, and technology used.6Leone G. Catarino A.I. Pauwels I. Mani T. Tishler M. Egger M. Forio M.A.E. Goethals P.L.M. Everaert G. Integrating Bayesian Belief Networks in a toolbox for decision support on plastic clean-up technologies in rivers and estuaries.Environ. Pollut. 2022; 296118721https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2021.118721Crossref PubMed Scopus (7) Google Scholar Most riverine PRTs use non-selective technologies removing (potentially endangered) organisms, wood, and other natural flotsam that form important habitats for organisms. Nevertheless, environmental impacts are rarely assessed, probably for lack of policy.6Leone G. Catarino A.I. Pauwels I. Mani T. Tishler M. Egger M. Forio M.A.E. Goethals P.L.M. Everaert G. Integrating Bayesian Belief Networks in a toolbox for decision support on plastic clean-up technologies in rivers and estuaries.Environ. Pollut. 2022; 296118721https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2021.118721Crossref PubMed Scopus (7) Google Scholar There are additional concerns with riverine PRTs. They only skim the water surface, missing much of the deeper plastics; devices located at river mouths do not remove plastics from riverine ecosystems themselves; removal efficiency can be low, with one estimate as low as 54%10Hohn S. Acevedo-Trejos E. Abrams J.F. Fulgencio de Moura J. Spranz R. Merico A. The long-term legacy of plastic mass production.Sci. Total Environ. 2020; 746141115https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141115Crossref PubMed Scopus (55) Google Scholar; and, to significantly reduce plastics outflow to the ocean, thousands of rivers would need PRTs. A potentially more ecologically supportive alternative are stormwater traps, which retain large plastics closer to the point of release so they do not enter streams. Removing plastics from the ocean surface was popularized by The Ocean Cleanup (TOC), which made its name on the premise of using oceanic currents to passively clean the high seas’ surface. After several iterations, TOC reverted to a net towed at slow speed for up to two weeks to capture plastics. This leads to significant bycatch and likely increases neuston (surface-dwelling organisms) mortality as plastics and neuston animals accumulate in the same areas in the North Pacific Convergence Zone.11Chong F. Spencer M. Maximenko N. Hafner J. McWhirter A.C. Helm R.R. High concentrations of floating neustonic life in the plastic-rich North Pacific Garbage Patch.PLoS Biol. 2023; 21e3001646https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3001646Crossref PubMed Scopus (4) Google Scholar These surface communities are important to the functioning of nutrient-limited ecosystems of the high seas but were not included in initial EIAs.12Spencer M. Culhane F. Chong F. Powell M.O. Roland Holst R.J. Helm R. Estimating the impact of new high seas activities on the environment: the effects of ocean-surface macroplastic removal on sea surface ecosystems.PeerJ. 2023; 11e15021https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.15021Crossref Scopus (1) Google Scholar A single TOC device running for one year could impact 675 tons of zooplankton5Falk-Andersson J. Larsen Haarr M. Havas V. Basic principles for development and implementation of plastic clean-up technologies: What can we learn from fisheries management?.Sci. Total Environ. 2020; 745141117https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141117Crossref PubMed Scopus (16) Google Scholar along with sea turtles and sharks. The floating plastics that TOC could collect globally constitute a minor fraction of plastics in the ocean. Even in ecosystems like the North Pacific Convergence Zone, plastics are distributed across the interior ocean and vast areas.1Tekman M.B. Walther B.A. Peter C. Gutow L. Bergmann M. Impacts of Plastic Pollution in the Oceans on Marine Species, Biodiversity and Ecosystems.2022https://zenodo.org/record/5898684#.YjRGUzUxl6XGoogle Scholar,5Falk-Andersson J. Larsen Haarr M. Havas V. Basic principles for development and implementation of plastic clean-up technologies: What can we learn from fisheries management?.Sci. Total Environ. 2020; 745141117https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141117Crossref PubMed Scopus (16) Google Scholar Collection efforts at scale would have to be enormous: 200 TOC devices running for 130 years would only capture 5% of the world’s floating plastics9Zielinski S. Botero C.M. Yanes A. To clean or not to clean? A critical review of beach cleaning methods and impacts.Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2019; 139: 390-401https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2018.12.027Crossref PubMed Scopus (85) Google Scholar and result in significant CO2 emissions as two large ships tow each device. Manual collection and renewable energy can avoid high mortality and emissions. The Ocean Voyage Institute works with sailors to fit GPS trackers to derelict fishing gear encountered on their journeys. The Institute’s sailboats selectively retrieve the items, which totaled 150 tons in 2020.13Ocean Voyages InstituteOcean Voyages Institute's ship sails into San Francisco Bay with 96 tons of plastic from the North Pacific Scholar Many ocean plastics accumulate on the which is to to remove plastics from the using vehicles, and N. Gambardella C. Karantzalos K. Monteiro J.G. Canning-Clode J. Kemna S. Arrieta-Giron C.A. Lemmen C. Global assessment of innovative solutions to tackle marine litter.Nat. Sustain. 2021; 4: 516-524https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00726-2Crossref Scopus (29) Google Scholar the of the such PRTs have a to they are N. Gambardella C. Karantzalos K. Monteiro J.G. Canning-Clode J. Kemna S. Arrieta-Giron C.A. Lemmen C. Global assessment of innovative solutions to tackle marine litter.Nat. Sustain. 2021; 4: 516-524https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00726-2Crossref Scopus (29) Google Scholar or feasible on a large in of operating costs. in which collect plastic debris during fishing by disposal in reduce plastics on the at low additional and change and potentially their This could be a for change for a for a of hazardous marine M.B. Walther B.A. Peter C. Gutow L. Bergmann M. Impacts of Plastic Pollution in the Oceans on Marine Species, Biodiversity and Ecosystems.2022https://zenodo.org/record/5898684#.YjRGUzUxl6XGoogle Scholar not been probably it is and especially at and on As with this likely significant bycatch mortality and to Plastic removal by could reduce pollution but is limited in scale and and is The effectiveness of PRTs will to far of the increasing scale and of the as global plastics production for of thousands of The ocean a water of and rivers an of the vast scale of the A showed that of the PRTs been for removal N. Gambardella C. Karantzalos K. Monteiro J.G. Canning-Clode J. Kemna S. Arrieta-Giron C.A. Lemmen C. Global assessment of innovative solutions to tackle marine litter.Nat. Sustain. 2021; 4: 516-524https://doi.org/10.1038/s41893-021-00726-2Crossref Scopus (29) Google Scholar and communities the of plastics often policy resources, and the scientific on the environmental impacts of PRTs. These the of the of plastics and could almost no are conducted on PRTs. This could to further by plastics offsets in a new market by the Plastics Removing plastics not the it it from one place to plastics can rarely be or At least are used to plastics, a of which are as and of the and Scholar Plastics pollutants from water and M.B. Walther B.A. Peter C. Gutow L. Bergmann M. Impacts of Plastic Pollution in the Oceans on Marine Species, Biodiversity and Ecosystems.2022https://zenodo.org/record/5898684#.YjRGUzUxl6XGoogle Scholar which their and reduces their as for technologies and and of the and Scholar This that even plastics can be from water are for or plants (Figure increasing and water using up and in evaluation of the impacts is needed to support the that PRTs a and significant to the plastics PRTs could become a used by plastics to production growth with externalized costs. PRTs a high and in the There is a significant risk that plastics manufacturers PRTs to their production under the of responsibility or plastics This will further responsibility for the externalized costs of plastics production from to the of the on PRT from effective prevention, to reduce global plastics and can into a of upstream plastics production costs less than other including collection or as lower W.W.Y. Shiran Y. Bailey R.M. Cook E. Stuchtey M.R. Koskella J. Velis C.A. Godfrey L. Boucher J. Murphy M.B. et al.Evaluating scenarios toward zero plastic pollution.Science. 2020; 369: 1455-1461https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aba9475Crossref PubMed Google are for In PRTs be as of efforts, to public health, hydrology, and to heavily polluted these will be measures plastic as the of is significantly We that to be and in the should be on the vast amounts of at and environmental in of the triple biodiversity and that PRTs are a safe and to the global plastics scientific evaluation on and globally M. Culhane F. Chong F. Powell M.O. Roland Holst R.J. Helm R. Estimating the impact of new high seas activities on the environment: the effects of ocean-surface macroplastic removal on sea surface ecosystems.PeerJ. 2023; 11e15021https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.15021Crossref Scopus (1) Google Scholar including climate human health, equity and justice, chemical and biodiversity The costs of plastic pollution in the environment should be the of PRT These assessment criteria should be enshrined in the Plastics The effective and to prevent plastic pollution is to and plastic and products from the and to design and and so that products retain their and of the and Scholar the and types of plastics globally and regulating the be to from the hazardous plastics and the plastics on prevention, and The effective measures will be in global N. K. N. S. T. J. G. C. et global to address the life of 2021; PubMed Scopus Google Scholar by the zero-waste hierarchy,8Simon J.M. A Zero Waste Hierarchy for Europe.2019https://zerowasteeurope.eu/2019/05/a-zero-waste-hierarchy-for-europe/Google Scholar to plastic pollution the life (Figure 1). of the around PRT impacts, and associated they low on the zero-waste as a to reduce plastics in pollution However, to prevent science-based assessment criteria be to the impact of PRTs on human health, the and the M. Culhane F. Chong F. Powell M.O. Roland Holst R.J. Helm R. Estimating the impact of new high seas activities on the environment: the effects of ocean-surface macroplastic removal on sea surface ecosystems.PeerJ. 2023; 11e15021https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.15021Crossref Scopus (1) Google Scholar for the Plastics Treaty can be in environmental on prevention rather than mitigation of and the release of from ships at states would do to to to negotiations toward an effective and Plastics M.B. is by the Earth of the is from the and from is by the of on was in by the and are of the of the for an Plastics Treaty which is to of to support evidence-based in the Plastics Treaty and a of policy.