PM informed about mapping of plastic waste

Plastic waste garbage oceanPlastic waste in the ocean, Photo: Norway Today Media

Solberg told about mapping of plastic waste in the oceans

A public-private partnership has been launched for mapping of plastic waste in the oceans. Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg (Conservatives) was in attendance when the cooperation was presented.

 

The presentation took place at Kongsberg on Wednesday.

The Norwegian Institute of Marine Research (IMR), the shipping company Torvald Klaveness, the Kongsberg Group and the Norwegian Ship-owners’ Association are part of the cooperation. It is talk of a pilot project for mapping plastics and a number of other important environmental parameters for marine health.

The partner will equip several vessels with advanced equipment to collect data on behalf of the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research.

– Sensors on the vessels will provide us with data from huge areas of the oceans over long distances. This will provide us with deeper knowledge about the spread of micro-plastic and the environmental consequences of this, says director in the Institute of Marine Research, Sissel Rogne.

About the Institute of Marine Research

The Norwegian Institute of Marine Research (IMR) is the biggest research institute of its kind in Europe, with about 1,000 employees. The main activities are research, advisory work and monitoring.

In January 2018, the IMR was merged with NIFES – The National Institute of Nutrition and Seafood Research. The merged institute will be a leading supplier of knowledge relating to the sustainable management of the resources in our marine ecosystems and the whole food chain from the sea to the table.

IMR’s head office is in Bergen. They also have an office in Tromsø and research stations in Matre, Austevoll and Flødevigen. In addition, the Research Vessel Department has ownership responsibility for the research vessels, which are its most important tools for collecting marine data. The IMR also has several laboratories that analyse the samples taken by its monitoring and research programmes.

Through its research and advice, the IMR seeks to help society to continue exploiting the valuable assets in the sea sustainably. They are a neutral knowledge provider, and publicize research results both in Norway and internationally.

The IMR is affiliated to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries – which also provides around half of the funding. The rest of the funding comes from external research grants.

 

© NTB scanpix / IMR / #Norway Today