The quantity of plastic reaching the Adriatic Sea is estimated at just under 15% of the total quantified further upstream. Mapp (Monitoring Applied to Plastics of the Po) is a project promoted by the Po River District Authority and the Foundation for Sustainable Development, in the two-year period 2021 - 2023.
The results obtained showed that plastic waste smaller than 10 cm prevails, belonging to the first three size classes (i.e. less than 2.5 cm, between 2.4 and 5 cm, and between 5 and 10 cm). The outcomes of the Mapp project formed the basis for the design of the 2024-2026 three-year experimental program for the recovery of plastics in the Po river, which will be implemented with the funding available from the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Safety through the SalvaMare Law. The prevailing observation of objects of small dimensions suggests that the waste undergoes intense fragmentation processes before reaching the sea. The observations took place, on a seasonal basis, in five locations spread over the entire stretch - Verolengo, Isola Serafini, Boretto, Pontelagoscuro, and PortoTolle.