POLARIS

Plastic pellet releases are a major issue for marine and coastal environments. Several maritime incidents involving plastic pellets have occurred in recent years, such as the cargo loss from the Trans Carrier in the North Sea in 2020, the fire on board the X-Press Pearl in Sri Lanka in 2021, the loss of containers from the Toconao off northern Portugal in 2023, and the collision between the Solong and the Stena Immaculate off the coast of the UK in 2025. These recent events have highlighted the transboundary consequences of this type of pollution and the need for a coordinated response at European level.

However, despite the experience and expertise developed in the field of oil spill response, no harmonised operational procedure currently exists to respond to plastic pellets spills caused by maritime incidents. Current spill preparedness and response frameworks do not account for the specific physical properties of these microplastics: low visibility at sea, high dispersal capacity, contamination of long stretches of shoreline, and long, tedious, and costly clean-up operations. National authorities and local stakeholders also point to the lack of predictive tools, risk maps, and shared protocols, as well as insufficient coordination between different levels of governance and the volunteers potentially deployed during emergencies.

Project aims:

The POLARIS project aims to strengthen the preparedness and response capacity of European and national institutions to plastic pellet spills. The project will implement an integrated approach combining scientific research, technological innovation, and operational capacity building.

For this, POLARIS will focus on three key areas:

• Area 1: Enhancing operational response and scientific knowledge.
• Area 2: Developing tools, guidelines, and best practices for authorities and operators.
• Area 3: Strengthening capacities, promoting risk communication strategies, and supporting risk management.

In addition to coordinating two work packages (including communication), Cedre will lead various actions. It will be responsible for conducting experimental studies in its flume tank, the Polludrome^®, to enhance knowledge of the behaviour of plastic pellets when released into the environment. Cedre will also assess emergency response techniques by testing innovative containment and collection technologies, as well as the use of drones for detection. The results will provide input for the technical guidelines that Cedre will produce during the project for authorities, operators, and volunteers. Finally, the project will conclude with a new training course specifically dedicated to plastic pellets, run at Cedre's facilities for some fifteen European experts.

The project consortium is led by IHCantabria (Spain) and comprises five other partners from three European countries as well as three associated partners. The project also receives technical, scientific, and logistical support from key players such as the Bonn Agreement, the OSPAR Commission, SDIS 29, and REMPEC.

More information

Official project website: https://civil-protection-knowledge-network.europa.eu/projects/polaris

Project LinkedIn account: https://www.linkedin.com/company/polaris-eu-project/posts/