“The unprecedented plastic waste tide plaguing our oceans and shores, can become as limited as our chosen relationship with plastics, which involves a dramatic behavioral change on our part…”— Claire Le Guern, author of “When The Mermaids Cry: The Great Plastic Tide” ©.
Excerpts;
We celebrate World Oceans Day at a time when about 8 million tons of plastic waste are ending up in the oceans each year, damaging ecosystems and wildlife, according to the UN Environment Programme. The major challenge scientists and policy makers face today is a lack of knowledge on the biological impacts of microplastics in marine organisms…
Read Full Article, IAEA (06-08-2020)
Microplastics are everywhere, study finds; PhysOrg (05-13-2020)
Scientists find highest ever level of microplastics on seafloor; PhysOrg (04-30-2020)
People may be breathing in microplastics, health expert warns; Guardian UK (05-10-2016)
People could be breathing in microparticles of plastic, according to a leading environmental health expert, with as yet unknown consequences on health…
Americans Consume Tens of Thousands of Microplastic Particles Every Year; Yale E360 (06-05-2019)
Americans consume more than 70,000 microplastic particles every year from the food they eat, the water they drink, and the air they breathe, according to a new study published in the journal Environmental Science & Technology. Scientists warn that while the health impacts of ingesting these tiny particles are largely unknown, there is potential for the plastic to enter human tissues and cause an immune response, as well as release toxic chemicals into the body…
Sea salt around the world is contaminated by plastic, studies show; Guardian UK (09-08-2017)
New studies find microplastics in salt from the US, Europe and China, adding to evidence that plastic pollution is pervasive in the environment…
Four billion particles of microplastics discovered in major body of water; Science Daily (09-12-2019)
While collecting water samples and plankton, researchers discovered a high concentration of microplastics, which are known to disrupt the marine food chain…
Underwater avalanches are trapping microplastics in the deep ocean; PhysOrg (03-25-2020)
Microplastics Have Invaded The Deep Ocean — And The Food Chain; NPR (06-06-2019)
Microplastics pollute most remote and uncharted areas of the ocean; Guardian UK (02-12-2018)
Microplastic pollution in oceans is far worse than feared, say scientists; Guardian UK (03-12-2018)
Plastic Pollution: When The Mermaids Cry, The Great Plastic Tide, Coastal Care
Washed out on our coasts in obvious and clearly visible form, the plastic pollution spectacle blatantly unveiling on our beaches is only the prelude of the greater story that unfolded further away in the world’s oceans, yet mostly originating from where we stand: the land…
