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The Mitsui & Co. Environment Fund

Introduction to Grant Projects

Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology Institute of Agriculture, Division of Environmental Science on Biosphere, Professor Hideshige Takada

International Pellet Watch: Observing POPs, identifying the source, and understanding long-term change through citizen volunteer monitoring

Research grant

Project Description

For the purpose of controlling environmental burden and continuously monitoring for persistent organic pollutants (POPs), the areas and sites for monitoring will be expanded, utilizing the networks of individuals, researchers, and citizen groups that have provided cooperation to date. Long-term pellet watch will be carried out to determine the rise and fall of POPs on a global scale. In addition, POPs data will be sourced from sediment and from the atmosphere in “hotspots" where there are high levels of POPs, and will be combined with the results of pellet measurements to predict the source of POPs.

Grant term
3 years
April 2012 - March 2015
Grant amount
9,966,000 yen
Activity region
Along the coast of the North Sea, Normandy Region, Germany, Iran, Mozambique, South Africa, Australia, Brazil, Argentina, West and East Coast of the U.S., Hawaii, Manila Bay (Philippines), Gulf of Tonkin (Vietnam), India, Ghana, Athens (Greece), Malaysia, Costa Rica, Caribbean Sea
Representatives explaining the project to local citizens and conducting pellet sampling on the coast of Africa

Overview of the Organization

Professor Hideshige Takada
Representative
Professor Hideshige Takada
Profile
Field of Study: Environmental Science
Affiliations: Society of Environmental Science, Japan, Japan Society for Environmental Chemistry, Japan Society on Water Environment, The Geochemical Society of Japan, The Oceanographic Society of Japan
Career History: Entered the Tokyo Metropolitan University Graduate School in 1982 after graduating the same university's Faculty of Science, Department of Chemistry. After completing two years of a Doctorate, joined the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology as a Research Assistant in 1986. Since then, has engaged in Environmental Research and Education as a Research Assistant, Associate Professor, and Professor, and has been recognized for awards including the Oceanographic Society of Japan's Okada Prize, The Japan Society on Water Environment (JSWE) Paper Award for Young Researchers, the JSWE Paper Award, and The Japan Society for Environmental Chemistry Academic Award.
WEB site
http://www.pelletwatch.org/
Joint Researchers
Dr. Jan.A. van Franeker (Inst. for Marine Resources and Ecosystem Studies - Wageningen UR), Dr. Laurent COLASSE (Universite de Rouen), Ms. Angelika Heckhausen (Deepwave e.V.), Dr. Alireza Riyah (i Tarbiat Modares University), Dr. Taylor (Tangaroa Blue Ocean Care Society), Dr. Mayumi Allinson (University of Melbourne), Mr. Fabiano Barretto (global garbage), Mr. Jorge Mermoz, Captin Charles Moore (Algalita Marine Research Foundation), Dr. John Farrington (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), Dr. Carey Morishige (NOAA Marine debris program), Mr. Charita Kwan (University of Philippines), Dr. Le Quang Dung (Institute of Marine Environment and Resources), Dr. Mahua Saha, Dr. John Ofosu-Anim (University of Ghana), Dr. Hrissi Karapanagioti (University of Patras), Dr. Mohamad Pauzi Zakaria (University of Putra Malaysia), Mr. Marc Ward (Sea Turtle Forever), Mr. Hugh Patterson (Oceangybe)
Research record
  • (1) Measurement of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in plastic resin pellets from remote islands: toward establishment of background concentrations for International Pellet Watch. Heskett M., Takada, H. and 8 others, Marine Pollution Bulletin, 64, 445-448, 2012.
  • (2) Nationwide monitoring of selected antibiotics: distribution and sources of sulfonamides, trimethoprim, and macrolides in Japanese rivers. Murata A., Takada, H. and 4 others, Science of the Total Environment, 409, p.5305-5312, 2011.
  • (3) International Pellet Watch: Global monitoring of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in coastal waters. 1. Initial phase data on PCBs, DDTs, and HCHs. Ogata Y., Takada H., and 20 others, Marine Pollution Bulletin, 58, 1437-1446, 2009.
  • (4) Evaluation of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) as water-soluble molecular markers of sewage. Nakada, N.; Takada, H. and 5 others, Environ. Sci. Technol., 42(17), 6347-6353, 2008.