Join a panel of experts in the comments section of this page on Wednesday 17 June, 1-2pm BST to discuss how business can tackle plastic pollution.

Research published in Science earlier this year estimated that some 5m to 12m tonnes of plastics enter our oceans every year, equivalent to 1.5% to 4.5% of the world’s total plastic production.

Left unaddressed, Andreas Merkl CEO of the Ocean Conservancy warns that we could be headed for 1kg of plastic for every 3kg of fish. A daunting prospect given that plastics have already been found inside animals across the food chain, from mussels and fish to sea turtles and whales.

During the 2014 International Coastal Clean run by Ocean Conservancy, volunteers reported finding over 1.5m plastic pieces, but as more plastic is consumed by emerging middle classes in developing countries, downstream solutions can only do so much.

Would moving to a circular economy – where materials are recovered, recycled and reused – present a more effective way to tackle ocean waste?

Join the live chat

Join a panel of experts on Wednesday 17 June, 1-2pm BST on this page in the comments section where they’ll be taking questions on the topic. Questions we’ll explore will include:

• How are business, government and NGOs collaborating to prevent and clean up plastic waste in oceans?
• How can businesses give plastic waste a second lease of life and what are some of the barriers to reprocessing plastic recovered from water?
• How can companies and consumer goods firms redesign their products and business models to help realise a goal of zero plastic waste in oceans?
• How can consumer confusion around what is recyclable be cleared up?

On the panel

Nicholas Mallos, director, Trash Free Seas Program, Ocean Conservancy
Bridget Croke, investor and industry partnerships, Closed Loop Fund
Alexis Haas, director sustainability, Adidas
Jenna Jambeck, assistant professor of environmental engineering, University of Georgia
Ben Kneppers, co-founder, Bureo Skateboards
Shubhankar Ray, global brand director, G-Star RAW

You may also submit questions for the panel in advance using the form below or tweeting them to @GuardianSustBiz using #askGSB.