From the Great Pacific garbage patch to inland rivers, plastics are among the most widespread contaminants on Earth. Microplastics — particles of plastic smaller than five millimeters — are especially pervasive. As they build up in Earth’s waters, microplastics are also becoming a permanent part…
Plastics in our waste streams are breaking down into tiny particles, causing potentially catastrophic consequences for human health and our aquatic systems, finds research from the University of Surrey and Deakin’s Institute for Frontier Materials. Led by Dr Judy Lee and Marie Enfrin from the…
By Chris Menahan Bottoms up! From CNN: They may be in our oceans, rivers and ice but there’s little evidence to suggest that microplastics in the water we drink pose a risk to our health. In its first review on the health risks of plastic…
By Mayukh Saha Ireland has given us the latest Google Science Fair winner in the age group of 13 through 18. Fionn Ferrier won the prestigious global annual science competition with his project which can remove microplastics from water. Ferrier won a $50,000 bursary at…
By Elias Marat With the world’s oceans awash in plastic, beaches and islands across the globe are waging an uphill battle in the struggle to manage the plastic debris washing ashore—especially the millions of tiny microplastics that are nearly impossible to sift from the sand. In Hawaii,…
By S.M. Gibson Half of all plastic produced on Earth between 1950 and 2016 has occurred since the year 2000 and the resulting plastic trash is now finding its way into every crevice of the planet—and our bodies. A new study—carried out by the University…
By John Vibes According to new research published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, the average person can absorb anywhere from 74,000 and 121,000 particles of microplastic each year. Surprisingly, half of this microplastic toxification comes from the air we breathe, and the other…
By Phillip Schneider The amount of plastic currently residing in the world’s oceans is so large, it’s almost incomprehensible. Making up part of the estimated 4.8-12.7 million tonnes currently inhabiting our waters is a small form of plastic known as microplastics, which is any plastic…
By Elias Marat The world is literally swimming in the filth produced by private industry, with our oceans becoming a vast dumping-ground for waste as plastic manufacturers and petrochemical companies continue to rake in profits with little regard for the long-term cost of a growing…
By Jessica Corbett Bolstering global demands to #BreakFreeFromPlastic and end the world’s worsening pollution crisis, a new study from the United Kingdom shows that “microplastics are being found absolutely everywhere.” “It’s no use looking back in 20 years time and saying: ‘If only we’d realized just how bad it was,’” lead…
by Julia Conley A new study of sea turtles in three oceans and seas drove home the point, green campaigners said Wednesday, that the world’s governments and corporations are not doing enough to reduce plastic pollution—and marine life is suffering as a result. One hundred and…
By Julia Conley A year after researchers at a New York university discovered microplastics present in sea salt thanks to widespread plastic pollution, researchers in South Korea set out to find out how pervasive the problem is—and found that 90 percent of salt brands commonly used in homes…
Anh Phan, Newcastle University In the adventure classic Back to the Future, Emmett “Doc” Brown uses energy generated from rubbish to power his DeLorean time machine. But while a time machine may still be some way off, the prospect of using rubbish for fuel isn’t…
By Heather Callaghan, Editor I wish we could say that there are only 88,000 tons of plastic in all of our oceans. But really, there is 88,000 tons of plastic in an area known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Luckily, each journey of a thousand steps…
By Mac Slavo According to a new study, microplastic can escape from polluted waters via flying insects and contaminate our skies. The research revealed that these spreadable plastics could escape from polluted waters via flying insects and threaten birds and other animals which eat the insects….
Kate O’Neill, University of California, Berkeley A global plastic waste crisis is building, with major implications for health and the environment. Under its so-called “National Sword” policy, China has sharply reduced imports of foreign scrap materials. As a result, piles of plastic waste are building…
By Matthew J. Hoffman, Rochester Institute of Technology and Christy Tyler, Rochester Institute of Technology Awareness is rising worldwide about the scourge of ocean plastic pollution, from Earth Day 2018 events to the cover of National Geographic magazine. But few people realize that similar concentrations…
John Meeker, University of Michigan One of the main problems with plastics is that although we may only need them fleetingly – seconds in the case of microbeads in personal care products, or minutes as in plastic grocery bags – they stick around for hundreds…
By Phillip Schneider Last week, German clothing company Adidas announced its commitment to begin making their products with 100% recycled plastic by 2024. As reported by the Financial Times and picked up by CNN and other outlets, the company has pledged to fully “eliminate the use of ‘virgin’ plastic” in…
By Mariana Fuentes, Florida State University Have you ever considered that small pieces of plastic less than 5 millimeters long, or smaller than a pencil eraser head, called microplastics, can affect large marine vertebrates like sea turtles? My research team first discovered this disturbing fact…
