RE: Marine litter & plastic soup: can we act together now?

Dear converters:

European Plastics Converters (EuPC), the EU-level trade association representing over 50 000 companies in Europe that are producing more than 45 million tonnes of plastics products a year, has initiated the European Waste Free Oceans (EWFO) project with the goal of reducing floating marine debris on EU coastlines by 2020.

One of the ways we want to achieve this goal is through engaging fishermen, existing infrastructure, and EU subsidies to clean up floating marine debris and bring it back to land for sorting and recycling. This will be achieved through fostering the development and education on the use of new trawls and technology, through the support of corporate sponsors, associations and the EU institutions.

Recovery and recycling, however, are only one aspect of the project.  Education and communication make up a central part of the initiative – with the dual aim of stopping floating marine debris from reaching Europe’s seas and showing that this is an own-initiative by the industry.  Already we have initiated a study with the University of Ghent into the effect of micro plastics in mussels and lugworms.  We hope to continue raising awareness by addressing the issue at all levels; by working with local authorities and politicians, encouraging the fishing community to improve their environmental status, and developing scientific media campaigns to create high visibility for the project.  One such way of creating high visibility is with the involvement of science-based TV campaigns to explain the project and highlight our results.  The launch of the EWFO project will take place during the EuPC Annual Meeting (18 – 19 May 2011) in Saint-Jean Cap Ferrat, France, with a live demonstration of the collection trawl and the organisation of the separation and recycling of the Marine debris.  With industry leaders such as [COMPANY] and with the cooperation/backing of the EU institutions, the EWFO initiative will demonstrate an industry that is united in leading the fight against this growing global problem.

This is why we are contacting you, MR/MRS [NAME] or [COMPANY] to join the Waste Free Oceans project and become a corporate sponsor of the initiative for 36 months. There are three levels of corporate sponsorship with varying levels of publicity/visibility for the sponsor:

3 Year Campaign Options

On 3 March 2011 EuPC will be organising a workshop in Brussels with all the contributors in order to agree on the final terms and conditions for the consortium.
Enclosed is a PDF file which explains our strategic objectives and a plan for moving forward with this project. You will also find an EWFO sponsor application form that we would like you to fill out and return to our association if you wish to join the consortium and participate in our kick-off workshop in March 2011.

We welcome your participation in this important initiative. For further information please contact Padraig Nolan ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) or Sophia Huda ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) at our offices in Brussels. Should you require a personal meeting for more information please do not hesitate to inform us.

Sincerely,

Alexandre Dangis                          Bernhard Borgardt
EuPC Managing Director                    EuPC President

Brussels, 1 December 2010

European Plastics Converters AISBL

Avenue de Cortenbergh, 71 - 1000 Brussels, Belgium

Phone: +32 (0)2 732 41 24 • Fax: +32 (0)2 732 42 18

E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it • Website: www.eupc.org

Waste Free Oceans Foundation - (handout) - 537 KB

Sponsor form - 92 KB