Unraveling the Role of Plastic Waste Pollution in the Amvrakikos Wetlands National Park, Greece: The Stakeholders’ Views
Veronika Andrea, Paraskevi Mpeza, Dimitris Barelos and Chrysostomos Stylios
The intensive use of plastic material in every aspect of life has generated a plastic waste stream and the so-called “plastic pollution crisis.” The shrinking landfill capacity and the dispersion of plastic debris in the environment further increase this crisis [1,2]. In 2018, global plastics manufacture reached almost 360 million tons with plastics production in Europe at 62 million tons. Key industries such as tourism and aquaculture fisheries are heavily influenced by plastic pollution. Ideas including circular economy, material reuse, recycling alternatives, incentives to industry for biodegradable package design, orientation of industry, policy and consumer patterns are behaviors towards the protection of the environment and the need to describe local or national policy. This paper aims to provide information on plastic waste stream in coastal zones of Amvrakikos Gulf and Lefkada, Greece, mainly focusing on the socioeconomic context and wetland values and the connection of management scenarios with resource efficiency.