The Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the Ocean (MARCO) hosted a webinar on Aug. 22 examining regional and federal policies addressing marine microplastics and plastic waste. “Microplastics and Producer Responsibility” was the final in a four-part MARCO webinar series exploring the impact of microplastics and microfibers on coastal and ocean resources in the region.
The webinar highlighted case studies of regional advocacy efforts and explore Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) schemes. It explored how to engage businesses and policymakers in plastic waste reduction and prevention, discussed policy actions aimed at mitigating plastics, and identified actionable steps for stakeholder implementation.
The session was moderated by Steve Raabe, owner and founder of the research firm OpinionWorks. It featured the following panelists (scroll below for bios):
- Matt Gove, Mid-Atlantic policy manager, the Surfrider Foundation
- Angela Noakes, plastics policy analyst, the Ocean Conservancy
- Sara Weitzel, natural resources planner, Maryland Department of the Environment
The 2025 Microplastics Webinar Series gathered leading researchers and policy experts to discuss key concerns, research gaps, and emerging solutions to this growing challenge. The sessions aimed to share the latest scientific findings, spark conversations, and identify actionable steps for regional stakeholders. Visit the Marine Debris Work Group web page for links to recordings of the previous webinars. Questions about the webinars may be directed events@midatlanticocean.org.
Speaker Bios
Matt Gove
Matt Gove has worked in coastal management for 20 years with Surfrider, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation. He holds a master’s in coastal environmental management from Duke University. Contact Matt directly at mgove@surfrider.org.
Angela Noakes
Angela Noakes is a plastics policy analyst at Ocean Conservancy, where she focuses on state and federal policy solutions to prevent plastic pollution. Angela leads efforts to reduce waste from single-use plastics, promote producer accountability, and address microplastics. Before joining Ocean Conservancy, Angela was the associate director, U.S. policy development in the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Washington, D.C. office, where she provided research, policy analysis and policy development support across a range of international and domestic policy issues. Angela earned her J.D. from the University of Washington in Seattle and bachelor’s degrees in environmental management and government from the University of Redlands in Redlands, California.
Sara Weitzel
Sara Weitzel is a natural resources planner with the Maryland Department of the Environment in the Waste Diversion Division. Her work supports the Resource Recovery Plan for Maryland including: Food Residual Diversion, Recycling Market Development, and Extended Producer Responsibility laws. She received her B.S. in environmental science and management from the University of California, Davis. To contact Sara directly, please email sara.weitzel@maryland.gov.
Steve Raabe (Moderator)
Steve Raabe founded the non-partisan, independent research firm OpinionWorks in 2001 to study perceptions and attitudes on important questions related to sustainability, public health, and education. Steve began his career in the 1980s as a phone room supervisor. Today, he measures public priorities for state and local agencies from Oregon to New York, is the principal author of the EPA’s Chesapeake Bay Stewardship Index, and has been the public opinion pollster for The Baltimore Sun newspaper since 2007. He offers his social science expertise nationally to behavior change initiatives and perceptions studies for The Recycling Partnership, the Chesapeake Bay Program, Long Island Sound Partnership, Mid-Atlantic Regional Council on the Ocean, and others, and has conducted brand awareness studies for two dozen colleges and universities from coast to coast.