Lake Geneva is no exception to this invasion of plastic, and it is against this backdrop that the ASL has been tackling the issue since 2014. It's a battle that it has been waging for 10 years now, with concrete actions on the ground such as Net'Léman - the great lake clean-upparticipatory science initiatives such as theApp Net'Léman or scientific studies such as Pla'stock or Léman Plastic Action.

The study Pla'stock conducted on 25 beaches on Lake Geneva reveals an average of 7,600 microplastics per m² including 60% of synthetic textile fibres released by clothes during washing or normal wear and tear. In terms of macroplastics, the average concentration was 3.4 plastic elements per linear metre of beach. Half of the elements collected were unidentified fragments. The four most frequently identified elements are cigarette butts, food packaging, pellets (industrial plastic granules) and cotton buds.

The study Léman Plastic Actioncompleted in 2024, is based on a modelling approach and shows that 100 tonnes of plastic enter the lake every year. It also points to other factors not detected in the study Pla'stockThese include tyre dust, paint from facades and roads, and residues from synthetic sports surfaces.

 In order to make as many people as possible aware of this growing threat to the health of ecosystems and humans, the ASL, in partnership with the University of Geneva, organised a public conference on 18 March 2025 at the Campus Biotech in Geneva, at which a number of specialists in the field gave their views. The evening provided an opportunity to review the current state of research and existing data in the Lake Geneva and Swiss regions, to discuss the most important sources, and to propose solutions to reduce this insidious pollution.