About MINAGRIS
Exploring the Impact of Microplastics on Agricultural Soil Health
Plastic use in agriculture leads to soil contamination with micro- and nano-plastics (MNP) from various sources, including contaminated fertilizers. These plastics can be ingested by organisms and affect plant systems. Studies show MNPs accumulate in soil, altering properties and functions like water dynamics and nutrient cycling, impacting soil biodiversity and farm economics. The presence of other pollutants may exacerbate these effects, creating complex environmental challenges.
MINAGRIS aims to understand the harmful impacts of plastic debris on soil biodiversity, functions, ecosystem services, agricultural productivity, and socio-economic outcomes at the farm level.
Project objectives
MINAGRIS strategy
Approach
MINAGRIS is based on a multi-actor approach to engage stakeholders and identify needs, improving farmer and citizen awareness, joint development of novel strategies for reducing plastic contamination.
Project objectives
MINAGRIS aims to improve soil health by assessing the effects of micro and nano plastics on agricultural ecosystems and guiding sustainable plastic usage to bolster safe and economically viable European food systems.
• Monitor plastic use and resulting micro and nano plastics (MNP) levels across 11 European sites. (WP3)
• Develop a unified method for analyzing plastic usage and MNP impacts on European agriculture. (WP2, WP3)
• Foster a multi-actor approach to ensure a thorough assessment of MNP impacts on agricultural soils, influencing EU policies. (WP2)
• Evaluate MNP effects on soil biodiversity, physical and chemical properties, agricultural productivity, and ecosystem services. (WP4, WP5, WP7)
• Study MNPs’ interactions with pesticides and additives, assessing their effects on soil and agricultural outputs. (WP4, WP5, WP7)
Investigate how plastics break down in soils and how MNPs move to other environmental areas. (WP5, WP6)
• Analyze the sustainability implications of intentional and unintentional plastic usage in agriculture. (WP7)
• Educate stakeholders and the public on the environmental and socio-economic effects of MNPs to guide policy and innovation. (WP8)
Equip farmers with knowledge and tools to manage MNP exposure and adopt sustainable practices effectively. (WP3, WP7, WP8)
Project partners
Collaborating for Sustainable
Agricultural Solutions
1 - WU
Wageningen University, part of Wageningen University & Research (WUR), is the only university in the Netherlands that specifically…
2 - UBERN
With 18,000 students and 3,000 PhD students, UBERN is the third largest university in Switzerland and was ranked…
3 - FiBL-CH
FiBL is one of the world’s leading organic farming research and technology transfer centres dedicated to sustainable agriculture…
4 - UTH
The University of Thessaly (UTH) was founded in 1984. Today, UTH, with 37 Departments and 8 schools, is…
5 - UL
University of Ljubljana (UL) was established in 1919 on the foundations of a long-established pedagogical tradition. It is…
6 - UCSC
The Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (UCSC) is the largest Italian free academic Institution, counting 5 campuses, 12…
7 - FiBL
The Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL) Austria is an independent non-profit organization with two locations and the…
8 - UoG
Established in 1988, the Countryside and Community Research Institute (CCRI) is part of the University of Gloucestershire. The…
9 - FUB
Freie Universität Berlin (FUB) has been one of the German universities of excellence since 2007. The university is…
10 - INRAE
INRAE is the new French Institute for Agriculture, Food and Environment, created in January 2020 from the merger…
11 - POLITO
The Politecnico di Torino was founded in 1859. A long history, which bore out the University as a…
12 - CHQ
CHQ Technologies P.C. is a start-up/spin off company of the Technical University of Crete (TU-Crete), established in December…
13 - DTU
DTU is ranked as one of the foremost technical universities in Europe. DTU Management Engineering is one of…
14 - AGES
AGES is a government owned agency with a public mission and a research organisation attached to the Federal…
15 - NVM
Novamont is an Italian industrial company whose roots lie in the Montedison School of Materials Science and which…
16 - WR
Wageningen Food and Biobased Research (WFBR) is one of 7 closely linked institutes forming Wageningen Research (WR). WFBR…
17 - EQY
Since 1997, Euroquality has been supporting technological and methodological innovations within all organizations active in the field of…
19 - SPOT
SPOTTERON GmbH is an SME from Vienna Austria, EU with a long-time experience in designing and developing apps…
20 - EMU
Eesti Maaülikool (Estonian University of Life Sciences) is an integrated research, development, education and cultural institution with the…
21 -
Founded in 1877, TU Darmstadt is one of Germany's leading universities of technology and a member of TU9,…
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