The German Environment Agency (UBA) and the German Federal Institute of Hydrology (BfG) organ- ised a conference on plastics in freshwater environments on behalf of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB). The conference took place in Berlin on June 21–22, 2016, with 220 attendants from 20 European and two non-European countries. The objective was to exchange knowledge on plastics in European freshwater environments and to discuss its environmental and societal implications. The speakers and attendants had professional backgrounds in academics, regulatory authorities, industry and non-governmental organisations. Lectures and posters were presented on various topics, including sources and sinks, environmental concern, risk perception and management options. In preparation of the conference an issue paper was compiled on plastics in European freshwater environments. In this context, an informal ques- tionnaire was sent to water management agencies in Europe to provide an overview on monitoring, risk awareness and management options. The results of this survey were presented in the issue paer.