MAELSTROM Objective 1: Characterization of major sources of marine litter and macro-plastic, numerical modelling and field campaigns to support litter removal at the demo sites

Within the MAELSTROM project two complementary marine litter removal technologies are developed and tested. An automated seabed cleaning platform has been developed with a cable-robot able to remove marine litter from the seafloor at demo locations in the coastal area near Venice (Italy), and a Bubble Barrier system will be implemented to remove marine litter from the water column in the Ave estuary (Portugal). In order to select locations where the technologies can best be applied and to assess the impact of the litter removal on marine life, we have set-up and applied numerical models. Furthermore, results of field observations that were carried out in the framework of MAELSTROM are analysed and are put into context using the numerical modelling results.