PhD graduate’s environmental passion sparks breakthrough in microplastics pollution control
Environmental engineer Dr Michael Staplevan celebrates graduation, applying his expertise to strengthen disaster resilie
July 18, 2025
As a child, Dr Michael Staplevan spent his days on the New South Wales South Coast immersed in the outdoors. Growing up in Tabourie Lake, he remembers a childhood spent always outside.
“My mum has been heavily involved in Clean Up Australia Day, participating every year and volunteers in all the bush care programs,” Dr Staplevan said. “I think that sparked something in me.
“From early on it was ingrained in us to make sure we leave the environment in a better shape than how we found it. It has always been a priority for our family.”
While Dr Staplevan knew university was in his future, he never imagined that his passion for the environment would shape his study let alone drive his future career direction.
Today (Friday, 18 July) Dr Michael Staplevan graduated with a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) during the Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences graduation ceremony at UOW 精东传媒.
After high school, Dr Staplevan chose adventure over immediate study, spending two years travelling and chasing snow seasons across the globe before enrolling at UOW. Unsure of his direction, he began studying mechanical engineering, but soon realised it wasn’t the right fit.
“I swapped over to civil engineering, and even then I could see it wasn’t going to be a right fit for me. Everything changed when I discovered environmental engineering; a path I didn’t know existed until then,” Dr Staplevan said.
“It was a real turning point for me. It allowed me to focus on what truly interested me. For my thesis, I explored sustainable waste management, which combined my love for problem-solving with my commitment to the environment.
“Near the end of my engineering degree I was still deciding what I wanted to do in the following year. My honours supervisor suggested a PhD. I thought I needed a master’s degree first and wasn’t keen on spending another six years studying. He explained I could skip that if I did well enough in honors. It opened a new pathway I hadn’t known about.”
Dr Staplevan completed a Bachelor of Engineering with First Class Honours in 2018.
“I loved my undergraduate experience and solving environmental challenges, so I felt this was the ideal next step.”
Dr Staplevan took another two years off before throwing himself into his PhD full-time.
With the encouragement of his supervisor, , Dr Staplevan’s PhD journey took an unexpected turn. Initially focused on how antibiotics and microplastics interact in the environment, his research quickly shifted toward uncovering the processes that generate microplastics in the first place - ultimately opening new pathways for innovation in pollution control.
“I was fascinated by how microplastics were released into the environment and if I had the ability to come up with a solution to reducing this pollution.”
He discovered that the plastic recycling process – meant to reduce and reuse plastic – was in fact responsible for .
“We were able to identify a unique source of microplastic pollution and develop a preventative measure to reduce the impact on the environment,” Dr Staplevan said.
He identified the first step of the current plastic recycling process, when the plastic is shredded into smaller parts, is at the heart of the microplastics problem.
“Usually during the plastic shredding process microplastics are generated, which then go into a washing bay. This is where microplastics can leach out into the environment through the wastewater,” he said.
“While sieving microplastics for analysis, I realised this simple process could be applied by recyclers before the material is washed. Adding this step reduced microplastics in the wastewater by 96 per cent in our lab tests—a simple, effective solution to prevent pollution at the source.”
His discovery of this ‘simple’ solution, in collaboration with Professor Faisal Hai and Dr from the School of Civil, Mining, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, was published in the and in a commentary published in Science.
Driven to conduct research that promoted environmental responsibility and addressed industry challenges, Dr Staplevan collaborated with industry during his studies.
“I think it’s important to not only get academic knowledge but also be able to apply it into an industry setting,” he said.
“Having the opportunity of working with the Illawarra Shoalhaven Joint Organisation on waste and sustainability projects within our region while completing my PhD was incredibly beneficial. It allowed me to apply the insights from my research in a practical setting and, in turn, bring real-world experience back into my academic work.”
His passion for environmental sustainability led Dr Staplevan to join the Environmental Protection Authority in Sydney after completing his PhD.
“The team I worked with was deeply involved in managing NSW waste data. This data was analysed and used to inform policy decisions, identify grant funding opportunities, and support compliance and regulatory activities. Leveraging his government background, Dr Staplevan is now the Manager Resilience and Network Coordination for the Illawarra Shoalhaven Joint Organisation in Kiama, applying his expertise to help councils better prepare and adapt for future natural disasters.
“Although it’s a shift from my PhD focus on plastic waste, disaster resilience is an exciting and vital field. In our region, we face a range of natural hazards - bushfires, floods, coastal erosion, and landslides. With climate change increasing the frequency and severity of these events, it’s more important than ever that we equip ourselves with the knowledge and tools to adapt and prepare.
“Working collaboratively with other Joint Organisations across NSW, we’re bringing together relevant information to embed disaster resilience into Council frameworks. Our focus is on shifting from a reactive approach to a more proactive one - planning ahead to better manage the impacts of future disasters.”
Dr Staplevan is excited for the opportunities that await him in his new role and said he was thankful for everyone who played an important part in his studies while at UOW.
“The friends I met at UOW have become integral in my life. These relationships were vital for survival during the process and my success,” he said.
“For anyone just starting out, make friends who are at the same level, even if you study different subjects, so you can share the journey. Being able to support and learn from each other makes all the difference.
Dr Staplevan has already encouraged others to pursue a PhD and his advice to anyone on the fence is to “just go for it”.
“A lot of people think a PhD is this big, stressful load of work, but it's actually a great time to reflect with plenty of flexibility. Over three years you have many opportunities to grow as a person which will ultimately benefit your project.
“The best piece of advice I can give is to have fun and don't stress too much.”