Public preferences for marine plastic litter reductions across Europe

TL;DR

This study assesses European public willingness-to-pay for marine plastic litter removal, revealing strong preferences for environmental improvements but significant cross-country differences, informing policy decisions.

Contribution

It provides the first comprehensive empirical analysis of European public WTP for marine litter removal across multiple countries and seas.

Findings

Strong public support for marine litter removal

Significant differences in WTP across countries and seas

Implications for pan-European marine pollution policies

Abstract

Plastic pollution is one of the most challenging problems affecting the marine environment of our time. Based on a unique dataset covering four European seas and eight European countries, this paper adds to the limited empirical evidence base related to the societal welfare effects of marine litter management. We use a discrete choice experiment to elicit public willingness-to-pay (WTP) for macro and micro plastic removal to achieve Good Environmental Status across European seas as required by the European Marine Strategy Framework Directive. Using a common valuation design and following best-practice guidelines, we draw meaningful comparisons between countries, seas and policy contexts. European citizens have strong preferences to improve the environmental status of the marine environment by removing both micro and macro plastic litter favouring a pan-European approach. However, public WTP estimates differ significantly across European countries and seas. We explain why and discuss implications for policymaking.