research material solution

1. Highlights
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Technology can be used to target hotspots of marine plastic pollution.
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The Inventory is a tool to identify plastic pollution prevention and cleanup
technologies.
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Fifty-two inventions focus on preventing plastic leakage or collecting marine
plastics.
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Technology alone cannot solve the plastics pollution issue.
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The Inventory underscores the importance of cross-sector collaborations.
Abstract
As plastic waste accumulates in the ocean at alarming rates, the need for efficient and
sustainable remediation solutions is urgent. One solution is the development and
mobilization of technologies that either 1) prevent plastics from entering waterways
or 2) collect marine and riverine plastic pollution. To date, however, few reports have
focused on these technologies, and information on various technological developments
is scattered. This leaves policymakers, innovators, and researchers without a central,
comprehensive, and reliable source of information on the status of available technology
to target this global problem. The goal of this study was to address this gap by creating a
comprehensive inventory of technologies currently used or in development to prevent
the leakage of plastic pollution or collect existing plastic pollution. Our Plastic Pollution
Prevention and Collection Technology Inventory
(https://nicholasinstitute.duke.edu/plastics-technology-inventory) can be used as a
roadmap for researchers and governments to 1) facilitate comparisons between the
scope of solutions and the breadth and severity of the plastic pollution problem and 2)
assist in identifying strengths and weaknesses of current technological approaches. We
created this inventory from a systematic search and review of resources that identified
technologies. Technologies were organized by the type of technology and target plastics
(i.e., macroplastics, microplastic, or both). We identified 52 technologies that fall into
the two categories of prevention or collection of plastic pollution. Of these, 59% focus
specifically on collecting macroplastic waste already in waterways. While these efforts
to collect plastic pollution are laudable, their current capacity and widespread
implementation are limited in comparison to their potential and the vast extent of the

2. plastic pollution problem. Similarly, few technologies attempt to prevent plastic
pollution leakage, and those that do are limited in scope. A comprehensive approach is
needed that combines technology, policymaking, and advocacy to prevent further
plastic pollution and the subsequent damage to aquatic ecosystems and human health.
Highlights
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Models the relationship between mismanaged plastic waste and economic
development.
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Finds original empirical support for the EKC in the context of mismanaged plastic
waste.
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Plastics pollution reduced in countries through scientific and technical research.
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Examines policy implications of research findings in reducing plastics pollution.
Abstract
Our world is awash with plastic. The massive increase in plastics production, combined with
a shift to single-use, disposable plastics and widespread mismanagement of plastic waste, has
created a huge “tragedy of the commons” (Hardin, 1968) in our oceans, seas and waterways.
Plastics pollution is now a global externality that damages ecosystems, curtails biodiversity
and ultimately has the potential to affect everyone on the planet. Although waste output is
often modelled separately from environmental pollution in research, in the case of plastics,
the waste problem has become one of global pollution. In this paper, we model the
relationship between mismanaged plastic waste1
and income per capita for 151 countries, and
for the first time find empirical support for the environmental Kuznets curve using plastics
pollution data. Further, we find support for the hypothesis that a key instrument for reducing
plastics pollution is investment in scientific and technological research. The paper concludes
with a discussion of the results, limitations, and implications for future research and practice.