World Oceans Day: GreenPlanner Features Aqualis, an Italian Technology Against Marine Plastics
To mark World Oceans Day, GreenPlanner Magazine published an article by Gennaro Agrimi (UNIBA), written for his regular “Transizione plastica” column, on the scale of plastic pollution in the Mediterranean and an Italian technology designed to help address it. The article opens with data from the Union for the Mediterranean showing that around 570,000 tonnes of plastic enter the Mediterranean each year; although the sea covers roughly 1% of the world’s marine surface, it concentrates about 7% of global microplastics, a figure projected to quadruple by 2050. It reviews documented impacts on marine ecosystems and human health, citing:
- A study by the Universities of Pavia, Bari and Urbino on microplastic accumulation in Sabellaria coastal reef-building worms
- WWF/University of Newcastle (Australia) research estimating human microplastic ingestion at up to around 2,000 particles per week
- Recent findings of microplastics in human blood, placenta and lung tissue, published in journals including Nature Medicine and Environmental Health Perspectives
It then profiles Aqualis, a floating “smart bin” developed by the Italian company Aquageo to intercept floating waste, microplastics and oils/hydrocarbons (using the FoamFlex oleophilic sponge from T1 Solutions) in port areas, with its first unit launched at the Marina di Pescara. The device’s development involved the University “G. d’Annunzio” of Chieti-Pescara, the National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics, and LifeGate, alongside a three-year PhD programme funded by the Abruzzo Region.
The article includes perspectives from Aquageo CEO Alessandro Barbiero, PhD tutor Gianluigi Rosatelli and University Rector Liborio Stuppia on the technology’s research-driven development, and places Aqualis within LifeGate’s wider “Water Defenders Alliance” initiative.
Extra media: Read the article – https://www.greenplanner.it/2026/06/08/aqualis-contrastaplastiche-mare/