Plastics in Danube
By Mária Omastová | www.viadonau.org
Plastics have brought many benefits to society, but today the problem is that the current methods of their production and use and the disposal of plastic waste is creating a global environmental disaster. If we do not change this, some scientists believe that by 2050, it is possible there will be more plastic waste in the oceans than fish by weight.
The PlasticFreeDanube project focuses on macroplastic waste (> 5 mm) in and along the River Danube and its riparian area from the metropolitan areas of Vienna and Bratislava to the Gabčíkovo hydropower plant (SK). The project has the following main objectives:
• Create methodologies, data and a manual for assessment and monitoring of plastic pollution in fluvial ecosystems
• Develop an action plan for the management of plastic waste and implementation of pilot measures to reduce plastic pollution in the Danube
• Raise the awareness of the general public and stakeholders about plastic litter pollution in rivers
Plastic collection and analysis of sorted waste
Plastics are collected on the banks of the Danube. Groups of ten to fifty people take part in the collections. We work with volunteers and high school students. They are instructed about collection, and then receive gloves and bags and the collection begins. The project researchers have developed a protocol for waste collection and sorting, which helps when comparing the results. The pandemic situation in 2020 has limited these activities.
Austrian colleagues have prepared special networks that will be transported on a crane arm to the middle of the river. Everything that enters the networks is collected, sorted and statistically processed. We take photos of plastics, the composition of which we cannot identify, and small pieces of such plastic is analysed at the Polymers Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences in Bratislava. We use infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and other methodologies for analysis.
2,000 kg of plastic waste has already been collected by the PlasticFreeDanube project. Waste from the Donauinsel island in Vienna mainly comprised sanitary waste (especially wet wipes) and packaging in the rakes of the Freudenau power plant, and large quantities of plastics from households, sports and leisure activities were found, as well as waste from shipping (ropes, buoys). At the Gabčíkovo hydropower plant, various medical plastics, household plastics, and also various ship plastics and large plastic car components were found.
Further from the shore, we found a significantly higher proportion of plastic bottles and plastics foams. Of this, 30% to 50% were PET bottles. Plastics in the form of foams, i.e. polystyrene, polyurethane and others, were also found.
Awareness raising and action plan
Raising awareness regarding plastic waste in nature in general and specifically in rivers is key to sustainable behaviour change. Therefore, project information events and workshops were organized, and information materials for schools and other educational institutions were created. All documents can be downloaded on the digital communication information platform. In addition, based on the results of the project and workshops with various stakeholders and authorities, an action plan for the management of plastic waste was created.
We believe that the results of the project will significantly contribute to a reduction of the amount of plastic waste and its negative impact on the River Danube, which is one of the most important transnational ecological corridors in Europe. Findings from the international project will certainly find application in other river systems.
Project facts:
Title: Macro plastic waste in and along the Danube (PlasticFreeDanube)
Interreg V-A Slovak Republic – Austria, INTERREG V-A SKAT/2017/ TP/01
Duration: 1 October 2017 – 31 March 2021
Budget: EUR 1.23 Mil. EU-Funding (ERDF): EUR 1.05 Mil.
The bilateral project PlasticFreeDanube is implemented by 5 partners from Austria and Slovakia and 18 strategic partners.
Project Leader : University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (BOKU), Austria
via Donau – Austrian Waterway Company, Austria
RepaNet o.z., Slovakia
Polymer Institute of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Slovakia
Donau-Auen National Park, Austria