High North News

Global Leaders Meet in Iceland as Plastic Pollution Reaches Every Part of the Ocean

Trine Jonassen
micro-plastic plastic ocean waste plastic pollution

Marine plastic pollution has become a global crisis, with plastic now found from the ocean surface to the seabed, inside marine life and across the food chain.

In October 2026, Iceland will bring together more than 300 scientists, policymakers, industry leaders and ocean stakeholders to accelerate action on one of the most urgent threats facing marine ecosystems.

The Third International Symposium on Marine Plastic Pollution will take place at Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre in Reykjavík from 20 to 22 October 2026. The event will focus on the latest science, practical solutions and international cooperation needed to reduce plastic pollution and protect the health of the ocean.

Plastic pollution is now detected in some of the planet’s most remote waters, including the Arctic and Antarctic. Microplastics are also increasingly found in marine organisms and humans, underscoring the need for coordinated action across science, policy and industry.

The symposium is organized by the Government of Iceland in partnership with domestic and international partners committed to ocean sustainability.

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  • Eight out of ten northern fulmars have plastic in their stomachs

    Astri Edvardsen

    A new study of fulmars in Northern Norway, Central Norway, Iceland and East Greenland shows that 81 percent of these seabirds have plastic in their stomachs, writes the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA).

    A total of 507 fulmars were examined between 2018 and 2024. The study was conducted in collaboration with fishermen who catch the birds as incidental bycatch.

    The researchers also found that fulmars from Northern Norway and Eastern Greenland had more plastic particles than birds from Iceland. At the same time, the plastic particles found in fulmars from Iceland were, on average, heavier than those found in birds from Northern Norway.

    One possible explanation is that plastic transported northwards by ocean currents gradually breaks down into increasingly smaller fragments over time.

    "We still know too little about how long plastic remains in fulmars and how harmful it is to the birds," says Nina Dehnhard, Senior Researcher at NINA.

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