Plastic Pirates – Go Europe!

Teaming Up Against Plastic Waste!

The fascination with the ocean and rivers, together with their importance as a guarantor of species diversity, know no bounds. But plastic pollution on beaches and riverbanks in Europe also doesn’t stop at man-made borders. For this reason, avoiding micro- and macroplastic in the environment, a scientific approach to this challenge, and researching sustainable materials are tasks which we Europeans must take on together.

Plastic Pirates – Go Europe! is a European Citizen Science campaign, in which school classes and youth groups collect plastic samples from streams and rivers and document their findings. The collected data is then analysed by scientists and researchers. In this way, young European citizens are making an important contribution to researching the state of European rivers and the extent and pollution caused by plastic waste.

Find out what the Plastic Pirates do!

You will get the best overview of the initiative by watching our introduction videos. They explain the idea behind the Plastic Pirates, the objectives, and the citizen science approach towards combating plastic pollution.

What are we trying to achieve?

We want to tackle plastic pollution in Europe's rivers, waterways, and at coastlines. By participating in this citizen science project, you can contribute to important research while raising awareness about the impact of plastic waste on our waterways and oceans. Read more about the objectives of the campaign.

Let's go out in the field and do a sampling!

There is not much needed to do a Plastic Pirates sampling. You can get started by studying the detailed project materials. You can download them for free and they explain in detail how the scientific protocol works.

You uploaded your data and want to check your results?

Every data-upload should appear on our interactive map. In case your data point is not on the map or in the wrong location, do not hesitate to contact us.

We have endorsed the Mission Charter to Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030!

In case you would like to know more about our efforts to spread the Plastic Pirates all across Europe and out part in Horizon Europe as well as the Mission Restore our Oceans and Waters by 2030, click here. We urge you to also sign the Mission Charter to Restore our Oceans and Waters by 2030 here.

Join us!

And help us close gaps in the existing research on the amount of different types of plastic waste. The fight against pollution from plastic waste, for cleaner water and for preserving natural resources for future generations in a united Europe can be a success only if we – the citizens – actively support joint political initiatives in the places we live.