Europe’s landscape is dotted with thousands of lakes. The vital freshwater environments they provide for people and wildlife are being celebrated as part of the first ever UN World Lake Day. But despite their importance, some of Europe’s most treasured lakes are polluted with tiny fragments from plastic bags and synthetic fabrics, according to a LIFE project that has been searching for solutions to this problem.  

The LIFE BLUE LAKES project spent 4 years trying to understand the scale of the problem caused by microplastics – fragments of plastic less than 5mm in size – at several lakes in Italy and Germany. Pilot monitoring projects at 3 Italian lakes – Bracciano, Trasimeno and Piediluco – over a 2-year period revealed 98% of water samples were contaminated with plastic particles. In total the project team collected more than 9 000 plastic fragments in the samples. Most came from old plastic bags that break down into ever smaller parts.  

Researchers on the project also developed methods for monitoring microplastics at 3 drinking water and 2 wastewater treatment plants at Lake Garda near Milan and at Castreccioni near Macerata. They found 30-90% of microplastics are retained in the treatment process, with the majority coming from polyester and polypropylene clothing. 

But the remainder escape out into the environment, where they can harm freshwater life in lakes and rivers or pose a risk to human health.  

‘We are at a point in history where understanding how to deal with this type of pollution can occur in parallel with the challenge of stopping the phenomenon,’ says Giorgio Zampetti, director general of Legambiente, an environmental organisation in Italy and coordinator of the LIFE BLUE LAKES project, which concluded in 2023. 

The project team also drew up an agreement called the Lake Paper, which asked lakeside communities, regional authorities, local businesses and tour operators to enter a voluntary commitment to help reduce plastic waste. This included taking steps such as improving separate waste collection, maintaining lakeside cleanliness and investing in water treatment plants. In total 40 communities and 80 other stakeholders from Lake Constance and Lake Chiemsee, in Germany, and Lake Garda, Lake Bracciano and Lake Trasimeno in Italy, committed to take steps to reduce microplastic pollution. 

The European Commission has proposed a new EU Regulation intended to reduce microplastic pollution and has already introduced restrictions on intentionally adding microplastics to products such as cosmetics. But convincing the companies whose products contribute to microplastic pollution to do more is an ongoing challenge, says Udo Gattenlöhner, executive director of Global Nature Fund, one of the project partners.  

The LIFE BLUE LAKES project appealed to more than 250 cosmetics, outdoor clothing and tyre manufacturers about their role in contributing to microplastics in European lakes. This included recommendations on how to reduce the microplastic pollution that come from their products. For example, clothing could be made from more durable fabric and manufacturers could recommend that their customers use shorter wash cycles at lower temperatures to reduce the release of microfibres. Biological substitutes such as bees wax, clay or nut shells could be used in cosmetics instead of microplastics. Developing low-wear tyres and removing bristles that often protrude from new tyres could help were other recommendations made by the project.  

The outdoor clothing industry was quick to respond while the cosmetics industry was hesitant, the project team reported. The Memorandum of Understanding from 3 textile companies and 1 cosmetic company agreeing to address microplastics in their product lifecycles.  

But the project also said new policy measures may be needed to force industries to address microplastic pollution further. 

LIFE BLUE LAKES contributes to the EU Water Framework Directive, the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive and the Directive on Single Use Plastics. Â