Joana Mira Veiga
Senior advisor/researcher, expert on marine litter
+31(0)88 3357243
joana.veiga@deltares.nl LinkedIn profileJoana Mira Veiga is a marine biologist, specialized in marine pollution and working on the topic of marine litter since 2010, particularly at the science-policy interface. She coordinates the Plastics Team within Deltares.
Her role in Deltares projects mostly focus on supporting policy development, through informative monitoring design and knowledge-based, integrated assessments. She is a strong promoter of the concept of “source-to-sea”, linking marine plastic litter with waste prevention and management, as well as the pathways through which plastics enters the marine environment. This holistic approach combines and integrates data with different Deltares software, modelling and simulating leakages, transport and fate of plastic into or in the freshwater and marine environments.
Joana has contributed to the first European-funded projects on the topic (MARLISCO, 2012-2015; and CleanSea, 2013-2015) and two studies for the European Commission, with a special focus on reduction targets and policy measures to prevent most common types of marine litter, targeting different sectors of society. Within Deltares she has recently led a World Bank project that estimated a national baseline of discharges of plastic waste from land-based sources into the sea for Indonesia; and a Europe-wide integrated assessment of marine plastic litter, from “source-to-sea”, produced to the European Environment Agency. She has also supported the development of a toolkit for assessments of plastic pollution in the ASEAN region; an initiative in Indonesia to detect plastic waste in rivers via remote sensing funded by the European Space Agency; and the litter removal European pilot project MAELSTROM.
Working experience
| 2010 - 2016 | EU Technical Group on Marine Litter (TGML) | The TGML was established in 2010 and formed by appointed experts to provide guidance to EU Member States on standardised monitoring methodologies and other aspects to support the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive’s descriptor 10 – Marine Litter. The Group has published several guidance reports. |
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MAELSTROM - Smart Technology for Marine Litter Sustainable Removal and Management
Europe, 2021-2024
Positions held: Marine litter expert
Main project features: demonstrate the application and effectiveness of plastic removal systems, including a bubble barrier in a river and an underwater cable robot to remove litter from the seafloor.
Activities performed: Literature review and knowledge-based input on sources and characteristics of marine litter in Europe and study areas.
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Detecting riverine plastic conglomerations, fluxes and pathways in Indonesia
Indonesia, 2021-2022
Positions held: Marine litter expert
Main project features: Develop a novel monitoring approach that uses a variety of satellite datasets to identify accumulations of floating litter in targeted rivers in Indonesia.
Activities performed: integration activities; recommendations on the usefulness of remote sensing data to monitor plastic pollution and leakages.
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European Marine Litter Integrated Assessment
Europe, 2019-2021
Positions held: Project leader, marine litter expert
Main project features: As part of the European Topic Centre on Inland, Coastal and Marine Waters, Deltares is providing support to the EEA in conceiving and developing a European-wide Marine Litter Integrated Assessment, in line with the MSDF and other plastic-related policies. This assessment will not only encompass the state of marine and coastal pollution but plastic waste management performances (sources) and riverine litter (pathways).
Activities performed: Task leader and coordinator; conceptual framework and detailed outline for the assessment; expertise on marine litter indicators and assessment approaches; draft report chapters and conclusions.
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Harmonized Methods and Tools for Assessment of Mismanaged Plastic Waste and Plastic Leakage to the Environment in the ASEAN Region
South East Asia , 2020-2021
Positions held: marine litter expert
Main project features: The project took stock of different methodologies for quantifying plastics leakage and pollution and produced a toolkit to advise ASEAN member states on approaches to use for their specific objectives. Activities performed: mapping and classification of plastic pollution assessment methodologies, for the riverine, coastal and marine environments; support the development of the online toolkit for the ASEAN region
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National Inventory, Metrics, and Hotspots Assessment of Marine Plastics Debris in Key Indonesian Cities
Indonesia, 2019-2020
Positions held: Project leader, marine litter expert
Main project features: Estimation of a national baseline of plastic waste discharges from land-based sources, from rivers and runoff.
Activities performed: Project management; conceptual model and emission model for plastic leakages and transport into the marine environment; monitoring recommendations; policy options.
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SEIS South Support Mechanism (ENI SEIS II South)
Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia, 2017-2020
Positions held: Marine litter expert
Main project features: Horizon 2020 initiative to support the implementation of the Shared Environmental Information System (SEIS) principles and practices in the ENP South region.
Activities performed: Support implementation of water indicators (SDG 6.2.1 - Access to sanitation; municipal wastewater collected, treated, reused; nutrients emissions from urban effluents); contribution to the integrated regional assessment on waste and marine litter.
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Seas, Oceans and Public Health in Europe (SOPHIE): a Strategic Research Agenda for Europe and Beyond
Europe, 2018-2020
Positions held: science-society interface expert
Main project features: SOPHIE project brought marine and environmental scientists together with medical and social scientists, public health and other experts to tackle these complicated issues in a unique forum.
Activities performed: Inventory and assessment of case-studies of Ocean-Human Health (OHH) interactions; contribution to future scenarios development to identify trends and effective policy interventions to optimize benefits for OHH.
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Towards guidelines for effective plastic removal from rivers
Netherlands, Europe , 2018-2019
Positions held: marine litter expert
Main project features: The project aims at providing guidelines and recommendations on the sections of the rivers where plastic outflow is maximal.
Activities performed: Literature review of characteristics and abundance of riverine plastic litter and microplastics.
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Assessing Plastic Waste Discharges into the Sea in Indonesia: An Integrated High-Resolution Modeling Approach That Accounts for Hydrology and Local Waste Handling Practices
Year: 2023 Authors: Joana Mira Veiga ,Bastien van Veen, Lora Buckman, Jos van Gils, Dhanang Tri Wuriyandoko, Caroline van der Sluys, Kate Philp and Anjali Acharya
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Country-specific assessment of mismanaged plastic packaging waste as a main contributor to marine litter in Europe
Year: 2023 Autors: Andrea Winterstetter, Joana Mira Veiga, Anastasiia Sholokhova3and Gašper Šubelj
Publisher: Frontiers in Sustainability
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Marine Litter in Europe - An integrated assessment from source to sea
Year: 2023 Authors: Joana Veiga, Andrea Winterstetter, Ciarán Murray, Gašper Šubelj, Sebastian Birk, Ülgen Aytan, Amy Lusher, Bert van Bavel, Anastasiia Sholokhova, Ahmet Kideys, Marcela Julia Smit, Mona Arnold, Jesper H. Andersen, Mustafa Aydin
Publisher: European Topic Centre Inland, Coastal and Marine Waters
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Plastic Waste Discharges from Rivers and Coastlines in Indonesia
Plastic Waste Discharges from Rivers and Coastlines in Indonesia
Year: 2020 Authors: Mira Veiga J, van Veen B, Tri Wuriyandoko D, van der Sluys C, Buckman L and van Gils J. Publisher: World Bank. Marine Plastics Series, East Asia and Pacific Region. Washington DC
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Towards a Cleaner Mediterranean: a decade of progress
Towards a Cleaner Mediterranean: a decade of progress
Year: 2020 Authors: Roddier-Quefelec C, Spiteri C and Veiga J.
Publisher: Publications Office of the European Union
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Measuring Marine Plastic Debris from Space: Initial Assessment of Observation Requirements
Measuring Marine Plastic Debris from Space: Initial Assessment of Observation Requirements Year: 2019 Authors: Martínez-Vicente et al. Publisher: Remote Sensing
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Towards the Integrated Marine Debris Observing System
Towards the Integrated Marine Debris Observing System
Year: 2019 Authors: Maximenko et al. Publisher: Frontiers in Marine Science
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Exploring public views on marine litter in Europe: perceived causes, consequences and pathways to change
Exploring public views on marine litter in Europe: perceived causes, consequences and pathways to change Year: 2018 Authors: Hartley B, Pahl S, Veiga J, Vlachogianni T, Vasconcelos L, Maes T, Doyle T, Metcalfe R, Öztürk A, Di Berardo M, Thompson R. Publisher: Marine Pollution Bulletin
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Enhancing public awareness and promoting co-responsibility for marine litter in Europe: The challenge of MARLISCO
Enhancing public awareness and promoting co-responsibility for marine litter in Europe: The challenge of MARLISCO Year: 2016 Authors: Veiga et al.
Publisher: Marine Pollution Bulletin
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Harm caused by marine litter
Harm caused by marine litter Year: 2016 Authors: Werner, S., Budziak, A., van Franeker, J., Galgani, F., Maes, T., Matiddi, M., Nilsson, P., Oosterbaan, L., Priestland, E., Thompson, R., Veiga, J., Vlachogianni, T. Publisher: Publications Office of the European Union
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Identification of Sources of Marine Litter
Identification of Sources of Marine Litter Year: 2016 Authors: Mira Veiga, J., Fleet, D., Kinsey, S., Nilsson, P., Vlachogianni, T., Werner, S., Galgani, F., Thompson, R.C., Dagevos, J., Gago, J. Sobral, P. and Cronin, R. Publisher: Publications Office of the European Union
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Guidance on Monitoring of Marine Litter in European Seas
Guidance on Monitoring of Marine Litter in European Seas Year: 2013
Authors: Hanke et al. Publisher: Publications Office of the European Union
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Marine Litter Technical Recommendations for the Implementation of MSFD Requirements
Marine Litter Technical Recommendations for the Implementation of MSFD Requirements Year: 2011 Authors: Piha et al. Publisher: Publications Office of the European Union
Activities
| 2017 - present | Deltares | Senior Advisor/Researcher |
| 2009 - 2016 | Coastal & Marine Union (EUCC) | Project Coordinator / Project Manager |