Institute of Environmental
Assessment and Water Research

4 June 2024

The Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Researh (IDAEA) and the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (IATA), both belonging to the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), have organized a new “Cicerón” event in Barcelona. The research centres presented some of their most relevant scientific research on environmental pollution and the effects on human health caused by plastics. The “Cicerón” program, which aims to connect science with society to create synergies to address common challenges, opened the doors of the IDAEA labs to companies, journalists and public administrations. The event was also attended by Ethel Eljarrat, director of IDAEA, José María Lagarrón, IATA researcher, Ana Castro, vice president of Innovation and Transfer of CSIC, Luis Calvo, delegate of CSIC in Catalonia, and renowned CSIC researchers.

As part of the itinerary, various IDAEA laboratories were visited. There, attendees were able to learn first-hand about the most recent advances in research on plastics, including new techniques to measure the toxicity of the chemicals present, innovative methods to study micro and nanoplastics in metabolism, and studies on their effects on air quality, among others.

These are new steps taken by science to answer fundamental questions such as what compounds are contained in plastic, one of the materials most present in our daily lives, and what are the potential risks that their exposure and release into the environment entails. Ethel Eljarrat, director of IDAEA, emphasizes that “we have scientific evidence that more than sixty of these chemical substances pose a risk to human health and the planet.”

During the event, attendees participated in a session to get to know six projects selected from the program, and developed by different lines of research centres such as the Institute of Catalysis and Petrochemistry (ICP-CSIC), the Institute of Polymer Science and Technology  (ICTP-CSIC), and the Interdisciplinary Thematic Platform SusPlast.

Some of their conclusions motivated a very enriching open dialogue session to share different perspectives on the social, economic and environmental needs to be addressed by the different actors in society. The discussion provided an overview of how science has an advanced catalogue to tackle the complexities of plastics management. However, it is essential to delve deeper into the issues that will enable its practical application.

“Science is ready to offer innovative and effective solutions to the problems associated with plastics. Only through sound legislation and efficient administrative management will it be possible to implement and maximise the impact of scientific innovations, ensuring an effective transition towards a circular economy that protects both the environment and public health,” said Ana Castro, vice-president for Innovation and Transfer at CSIC, concluding the day’s debate.

The management of plastic waste, a major challenge

In addition to obtaining plastics from non-renewable sources, another of the most relevant problems of plastic accumulation is the treatment of waste, both in the design of recyclable polymers and in the loss of the material’s properties during recycling. For this reason, several research teams are working on solutions based on circular bioeconomy, to obtain biodegradable materials from waste and thus return carbon to the soil. Other lines of research are pursuing new chemical recycling methods for polymeric waste.

In general, the search for more efficient and economical processes is a common imperative highlighted by the different agents participating in the conference. Thus, a very convenient day to combat pollution due to the accumulation of plastics, stressing the importance of science to assess and mitigate the impacts, underlining the need for interdisciplinary collaboration and collective commitment to achieve a common solution.