The Rhine River ranked first among the surveyed European waterways in terms of the volume of microplastics retained. In terms of the total amount of plastic waste remaining within river systems, it ranked third, behind the Turkish Korubgali-dere River and the Polish Vistula. The results of the study by scientists from Wageningen University and the Netherlands Research Center were published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology. Researchers studied 8,671 river systems in Europe and found that only 0.6% of plastic waste entering the environment reaches river mouths. More than 93% of the waste remains on land, and about 6% accumulates directly in rivers, banks, and bottom sediments. For the calculations, scientists used data for 2015. According to the developed model, about 3.55 million tons of plastic entered the European environment during this period. About 20,000 tons reached river mouths.

The Rhine River ranked first among the surveyed European waterways in terms of the volume of microplastics retained. In terms of the total amount of plastic waste remaining within river systems, it ranked third, behind the Turkish Korubgali-dere River and the Polish Vistula. The results of the study by scientists from Wageningen University and the Netherlands Research Center were published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology. Researchers studied 8,671 river systems in Europe and found that only 0.6% of plastic waste entering the environment reaches river mouths. More than 93% of the waste remains on land, and about 6% accumulates directly in rivers, banks, and bottom sediments. For the calculations, scientists used data for 2015. According to the developed model, about 3.55 million tons of plastic entered the European environment during this period. About 20,000 tons reached river mouths.