New projects for a better environment in coastal and marine areas

Reduced PFAS load from land to sea and a lower environmental impact through the use of non-toxic anti-fouling paints, cleaner fuels, and electrification. This is the focus of two new projects that have been granted funding through Formas’ funding call “Blue Transformation – Coast and Sea”.

Over the next five years, we will get to work together on one of the most significant environmental challenges of our time – reducing the PFAS load from land to sea, with a focus on source control, substitution, regulation and measures across the entire water cycle, says Linda Önnby, researcher and project manager at IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute.

The KUST-PFAS project is based in Malmö and the Öresund region, where a PFAS transition lab is to be established – a venue where researchers, water and wastewater companies, local government, industry and civil society will work together on preventive and system-oriented solutions. The project is being carried out in collaboration with Örebro University, Chalmers University of Technology, the City of Malmö and VA SYD.

A key part of our project is to use source tracing to build knowledge that not only strengthens our remedial efforts, but also the discussion on responsibility, policy instruments and cost allocation. The better we understand which activities and flows contribute to the PFAS load, the better equipped we will be to design effective and fair solutions, says Linda Önnby.

The second project, MARLIN (Maritime actors in research, co-creation and the transition to low environmental impact) aims to bring about change that delivers measurable progress towards good environmental status in Swedish coastal waters by 2030, by reducing impacts in three strategic areas: non-toxic anti-fouling paints, cleaner fuels and electrification, and reduced noise pollution. The project brings together researchers, government agencies, shipping companies, boating organizations and civil society in a joint effort.

Now we have the chance to show how the shipping industry and recreational boating can be part of the solution. We can bring about change by, for instance, testing more environmentally friendly alternatives to toxic anti-fouling paints and advancing electrification in real-world environments. The project is based on close collaboration between researchers, industry and government agencies, not only to test the solutions but also to remove the obstacles that have impeded the transition, says Erik Ytreberg, researcher and project manager at IVL.

Together, the eight projects that Formas has now approved will contribute to a better environment in our coastal and marine areas, strengthen the resilience of marine ecosystems and society, and create opportunities for a sustainable blue economy.

The funding call is part of the national research programme on seas and water, which runs until 2030, and aims to create the conditions for a strategic and long-term approach with a holistic perspective on water. The programme aims to facilitate close collaboration between researchers and stakeholders, and to bring together funding bodies in the water sector.

For more information, contact:
Linda Önnby, linda.onnby@ivl.se, tel. +46 (0)10-788 65 29
Erik Ytreberg, erik.ytreberg@ivl.se, tel. +46 (0)10-350 04 17