A research team studying the effects of microplastics in the Great Lakes environment will expand its reach with $300,000 in new federal funding. The efforts to intercept Rochester’s stormwater debris and educate communities will include Buffalo and Syracuse.
“Over the past year, our community coalition developed a successful debris interception and education program in Rochester, the Community Action for Stormwater Clean-Up and Debris Elimination (CASCADE) program,” says Christy Tyler, a professor in the Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences at Rochester Institute of Technology. “We are thrilled to be able to continue our work in Rochester and expand CASCADE through new meaningful partnerships in Buffalo and Syracuse.”
Tyler and Mary Austerman, a coastal community development specialist with the New York Sea Grant, lead the project.
The program installs LittaTraps, which collect debris, into storm drains at locations where youth can help with collection and the development of solutions to reduce pollution. Trash samples collected from the LittaTraps are then analyzed for amounts of plastic, their origin points and movement patterns. That data is used to develop more effective marine debris prevention strategies.
Microplastics are tiny particles that can easily move through the food chain and most commonly enter the environment via urban stormwater, agricultural runoff, and wastewater. Common sources which create the microscopic fragments include food wrappers, plastic bottles and bottle caps, plastic bags, cigarette butts, tire-wear particles, and synthetic clothing.
While little is known about their long-term impact on human health, research has found the particles, which are less than 5 mm in size, in human blood, heart, liver, and lung tissue, placenta, and breast milk.
The expanded work aims to create a larger interconnected network that actively prevents and remedies debris pollution in Western New York and the Lake Ontario and Lake Erie watersheds, officials say. The Great Lakes, which hold more than 20 percent of global surface freshwater, are a source for drinking water, irrigation, fisheries, and recreation for more than 30 million people.
“This project expands the successful partnership-driven installation of trash capture technology and educational outreach in Rochester to other Great Lakes cities,” says Katherine Bunting-Howarth, associate director of the New York Sea Grant.
Partners in the project include the University at Buffalo and Syracuse University. The Seneca Park Zoo Society, Rochester Museum and Science Center, Monroe County, the city of Rochester’s Department of Recreation and Youth Services, and SRGMF consulting are local partners in the project.
Rochester has been strengthening its work in microplastics research. The Lake Ontario Center for Microplastics and Human Health in a Changing Environment is a collaboration between RIT and University of Rochester, launched earlier this year, received millions in federal funding. Tyler serves as co-director for the center. On the community education front, Austerman collaborates with citizen groups and community leaders in New York’s Great Lakes region to address barriers and opportunities for enhancing resilience to extreme weather events and other related issues.
Funding for this project comes from a $27 million investment in projects to prevent and remove marine debris in coastal and Great Lakes communities under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. These projects use National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Sea Grant’s approach to support community-driven marine debris solutions.
The project is one of 10 Marine Debris Community Action Coalitions selected for funding. These coalitions work to engage communities, groups, and localities, particularly those that have been historically underserved.
“We are excited to expand the network of New York state’s urban communities, agencies, NGOs, and teachers focused on keeping plastics and other debris out of the broader environment,” Bunting-Howarth says.
Jacob Schermerhorn is a Rochester Beacon contributing writer and data journalist. The Beacon welcomes comments and letters from readers who adhere to our comment policy including use of their full, real name. Submissions to the Letters page should be sent to [email protected].