Addressing the Challenges of Microfibres - new date announced

Our event on ‘Addressing the Challenges of Microfibres’ has been moved from April to Thursday 17th December 2020 due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Owing to the global Covid-19 pandemic, the Knowledge Transfer Network, the UK Microplastics Network and UKCPN’s event on microfibres has been moved from its original date in April to Thursday 17th December 2020. The event will still be hosted at the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, titled ‘Addressing the Challenges of Microfibres – from source of production to environmental contamination’. Registration for the event is open here.

 

Microfibres are an issue of growing concern given their ubiquitous and persistent nature. Synthetic fibres and filaments often make the most durable and technical materials, and as such are widely manufactured and used for a variety of purposes. However, these materials shed fibres throughout their lifetime which can become easily and widely dispersed. The majority of focus on microfibres to date has considered synthetic microfibres from polymeric (plastic-based) textiles. However, it is increasingly recognised that a wide range of anthropogenic fibres including modified cellulose and dyed natural textiles such as cotton are also widespread throughout the environment, with unknown consequences for human and animal health. Due to their common manufacture, different characteristics and multitude of applications, microfibres pose a huge multidisciplinary challenge with respect to preventing or reducing their release and understanding any associated hazards they may pose.

 

This workshop will bring together the key players working to address the microfibre issue across industry, academia and policy to discuss the current research, challenges and solutions. The workshop will combine presentations and discussion sessions to discuss solutions and collaborative approaches to progress this field.

 

Speakers:

• Dr. Imogen Napper,¬†University of Plymouth. ‚ÄòPlastic Microfibres: The Journey from Washing Our Clothes to the Ocean‚Äô
• Dr. Miranda Prendergast-Miller,¬†Northumbria University. ‚ÄòMicrofibres in soil: effects on earthworms and their potential toxicity‚Äô
• Dr. Richard Blackburn,¬†University of Leeds. ‚ÄòSynthetic vs. Natural microfibres ‚Äì which should we be worried about?‚Äô
• Dr. Denise M. Mitrano, Eawag ‚Äì Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology. ‚ÄòReducing Microplastic Fiber Emissions to Waterways: From Textiles to Water Treatment Technologies‚Äô
• Dr. Neil Lant,¬†Procter & Gamble. ‚ÄòLaundry microfibre research: identifying near-term improvements en-route to a longer-term solution‚Äô
• Sophie Mather, The Microfibre Consortium. ‚ÄòFibre Fragmentation: Facilitating cross industry action to impact product change‚Äô

 

Register for the event here.