PlasticUnderground - Integrated Cross-Sectoral Solutions to Micro- and Nanoplastic Pollution in Soil and Groundwater Ecosystems

Recent evidence of increasing accumulation of micro- and nanoplastics (MnP) in soils and groundwater raise severe concerns by agricultural and
water industries, food manufacturers, regulators, environmental interest groups and citizens. Private and public sectors require detailed
understanding of environmental and public health risks posed by MnP in soils and groundwater. The PlasticUnderground Doctoral Network
creates supra-disciplinary intersectoral capacity for analysing the fate, transport and impacts of MnP in soils and groundwater to develop solutions
for reducing their environmental and public health risks, supporting the EC's circular plastic economy strategy. The central aim of the
PlasticUnderground Doctoral Network is to deliver international scientific excellence through a holistic supra-disciplinary and inter-sectoral
research and training network on solutions to the emerging crisis of MnP pollution in subsurface ecosystems in soils and groundwater, integrating
knowledge across traditional discipline boundaries to benefit the public and private sectors. The supra-disciplinary research programme includes
unique training opportunities for a cohort of 10 Early-Stage Researchers (ESRs) (plus one individually funded through ETHZ as Associated
Country partner) in environmental and social science, ecotoxicology, soil science and aquatic ecology, analytical chemistry, agronomy, data
science and numerical modelling as well as responsible innovation, method standardization for use in regulatory decision making and risk
assessment. The integrated training programme will prepare ESRs with skill sets that are urgently required in agricultural, water, chemical, and
manufacturing industries, environmental and regulatory agencies, academia, and the public sector and includes training provision by key
stakeholders that will directly benefit from the training in this network.