Could sunscreen be destroying our coral reefs? Hawaii lawmakers say yes
Hawaii is set to become the first state to ban the sale of sunscreens containing oxybenzone or octinoxate, two chemicals believed to be harmful to the environment.
Sunlight Reduces Effectiveness of Dispersants Used in Oil Spills
Two new studies have shown that sunlight transforms oil on the ocean surface more significantly and quickly than previously thought. The phenomenon considerably limits the effectiveness of chemical dispersants, which are during oil spills to break up floating oil and reduce the amount of oil that reaches coastlines.
County Starts Dumping-Related Clean-up Work at Goleta, Carpinteria Beaches; CA
Two months after trucks stopped dumping loads of Montecito mud onto the shore at Goleta Beach County Park, the ocean waters remain closed because testing shows bacteria levels significantly exceed standards.
Record concentration of microplastic in Arctic sea ice
Experts have recently found higher amounts of microplastic in arctic sea ice than ever before. However, the majority of particles were microscopically small.
Could a tiny enzyme eradicate plastic garbage plaguing the world’s oceans?
A small enzyme could be the solution to plastic pollution, one of the planet’s biggest environmental problems. Millions of metric tons of plastics wind up in the ocean each year.
Philippines closes ‘cesspool’ tourist island of Boracay
The Philippines has announced a six-month closure of the popular tourist destination of Boracay over concerns the island’s famous beaches and clear blue waters have been transformed into a “cesspool” due to sustained environmental damage.
The World’s Dirtiest River is Getting Cleaned Up; A Video
“The Citarum river, in 7 years, will be the cleanest river.” – Indonesian President Widodo…
South-east Asia closes island beaches to recover from climate change and tourism
More popular South-east Asian islands will be off limits to visitors this year as officials seek to protect eco-systems crumbling from warming seas and unchecked sprawl, despite the risk to tourism revenues and tens of thousands of jobs.
Dead zone in Gulf of Mexico will take decades to recover from farm pollution
The enormous “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico will take decades to recover even if the flow of farming chemicals that is causing the damage is completely halted.