A new laboratory supported by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was officially inaugurated this month in the Galapagos Islands to address the growing threat of marine microplastic pollution.
The Oceanography and Microplastics Laboratory was established by the government in Ecuador, with support from the IAEA, to monitor and analyse microplastic pollution in the Galapagos Islands. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Galapagos Islands are renowned for their extraordinary biodiversity and unique evolutionary adaptations, shaped by their remote location some 1000 kilometres west of mainland Ecuador.
While a robust monitoring and cleanup programme is in place to tackle the estimated six tonnes of plastic waste that wash ashore on the islands each year, microplastics?— plastic particles smaller than five millimetres?— pose a more complex challenge for the Galapagos National Park, a protected area encompassing 97% of the islands.
Nuclear-derived techniques can help detect and analyse microplastic particles too small for traditional monitoring. The laboratory is now analysing water samples and will be able to analyse sediment, and biota samples from the islands at a microscopic scale to identify the types of polymers and improve the understanding of how they disperse in the marine environment where they can endanger marine life.
In a video address at the opening ceremony for the laboratory on 17 July, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said the laboratory — situated on the Santa Cruz Island — will be an active partner in environmental monitoring and reporting of microplastic pollution for Ecuador, including the Galapagos Islands.
“The laboratory offers new opportunities to conduct studies on the environmental impact on the vulnerable and relevant biodiversity of the Islands, helping authorities to take and implement more precise control measures aimed at the protection and conservation of the Galapagos National Park,” he added.
The new laboratory marks a significant milestone in the IAEA’s NUTEC Plastics initiative, which has supported countries since its launch in 2020 in researching microplastics and applying nuclear techniques to enhance recycling processes. The support to the Galapagos Islands follows the IAEA’s work in Antarctica — another valuable ecosystem — with the launch of microplastics research there in 2024.
The data generated in the new laboratory will enable local and national authorities to more accurately assess plastic pollution levels and design targeted strategies to mitigate their impact. The information will also feed into the IAEA’s coordinated efforts under the IAEA Marine Environment Laboratories in Monaco to build a global network of laboratories with analytical capacities to monitor and mitigate marine microplastic pollution.
The IAEA, through its technical cooperation programme, has also strengthened monitoring and analytical capacities in institutions such as the Galapagos National Park and the Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) in Guayaquil, to address the growing threat of marine pollution from microplastics in the Galapagos Islands. The IAEA has allocated nearly €1 million to provide the new laboratory with equipment and training for monitoring marine stressors such as ocean acidification, eutrophication, and microplastic pollution — all of which threaten the region’s unique biodiversity and ecosystems.