This Mumbai lawyer inspired a massive beach cleanup
Since Oct. 2015, Afroz Shah, a constitutional lawyer and a full time “ocean lover and a beach cleaner,” has been clearing trash for four hours every weekend in what the United Nations has called the world’s biggest beach clean up ever. His efforts have inspired others.
Dramatic rise in plastic seabed litter around UK
An average of 358 litter items were found per square kilometre of seabed in 2016, a 158% rise on the previous year, and 222% higher than the average for 1992-94. Almost 78% of the litter is plastic.
Taste, not appearance, drives corals to eat plastics
Scientists have long known that marine animals mistakenly eat plastic debris because the tiny bits of floating plastic might look like prey. But a new Duke University study of plastic ingestion by corals suggests there may be an additional reason for the potentially harmful behavior.
Once-pristine Arctic choking on our plastic addiction
Earlier this year a global team of scientists sounded another alarm, revealing what they called the next major threat to the polar bears’ Arctic habitat: plastic.
Microplastics in the Baltic have not risen for 30 years
The concentration of microplastics in water and fish from the Baltic Sea has been constant for the past 30 years, despite a substantial increase in plastic production during the same period, report investigators.
Brain damage in fish from plastic nanoparticles in water
A new study shows that plastic particles in water may end up inside fish brains. The plastic can cause brain damage, which is the likely cause of behavioral disorders observed in the fish.
Sea salt around the world is contaminated by plastic, studies show
New studies find microplastics in salt from the US, Europe and China, adding to evidence that plastic pollution is pervasive in the environment.
Plastic fibres found in tap water around the world, study reveals
Tests show billions of people globally are drinking water contaminated by plastic particles, with 83% of samples found to be polluted. The US had the highest contamination rate, at 94%, with plastic fibres found in tap water sampled.
Kenya brings in world’s toughest plastic bag ban: Using plastic bags is illegal — and punishable by jail time
No matter where you go in Kenya — from the vast expanses of the Great Rift Valley to the white-sand beaches off the Indian Ocean — one thing is a constant: plastic bags. But beginning today, almost all plastic bags are illegal in Kenya.