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Researchers counted particles in seaballs that washed up on beaches in SpainUnderwater seagrass in coastal areas appear to trap plastic pollution in natural bundles of fibre known as “Neptune balls”, researchers have found.With no help from humans, the swaying plants – anchored to shallow seabeds – may collect nearly 900m plastic items in the Mediterranean alone every year, a study reported in the journal...

Polyester fibres that injure marine life were found in sea water across regionThe Arctic is “pervasively” polluted by microplastic fibres that most likely come from the washing of synthetic clothes by people in Europe and North America, research has found.The most comprehensive study to date found the microplastics in 96 of 97 sea water samples taken from across the polar region. More than 92%...

Post-Brexit regulation doesn’t match new EU rules to tackle ocean pollution, despite UK being Europe’s largest plastic waste producerThe UK has been accused of failing to honour its promise to curb shipments of plastic waste to developing countries, after it emerged Britain’s new post-Brexit regulations are less stringent than those imposed by the EU.From 1 January, shipments of unsorted plastic waste from the EU...

Tourist drawcards Kuta and Legian beaches are being overwhelmed by up to 60 tonnes of plastic rubbish every dayBali’s beaches have been covered in tonnes of ugly rubbish as a result of the monsoon and chronic failings in Indonesia’s waste management system.Authorities say that between 30 and 60 tonnes of trash is being collected from the island’s most famous beaches each day. Continue reading...

Crisp packets, cup lids and wet wipes among the more mundane objects commonly encounteredA full-size disco ball, a plastic Christmas tree and a double mattress were among the more unusual objects found by volunteers cleaning up the UK’s beaches this autumn.The most common polluting items retrieved in the Marine Conservation Society’s annual clean of coastal areas were pieces of plastic or polystyrene, plastic takeaway...

Health impact is unknown but scientists say particles may cause long-term damage to foetusesMicroplastic particles have been revealed in the placentas of unborn babies for the first time, which the researchers said is “a matter of great concern”.The health impact of microplastics in the body is as yet unknown. But the scientists said they could carry chemicals that could cause long-term damage or upset...

Production of concrete, metal, plastic, bricks and asphalt greater than mass of living matter on planet, paper saysThe giant human footprint stamped across the world in 2020 is greater than the impact on the planet of all other living things, research suggests.The amount of plastic alone is greater in mass than all land animals and marine creatures combined, the study estimates. Continue reading...

The Goldman environmental prize honours the achievements of grassroots activists in six continents, recognising their efforts to protect natural habitats and push for political change, often at great personal riskPlastic in paradise: Goldman prize winner’s fight to protect Bahamas Continue reading...

Villagers once burned the toxic waste as fuel, but a pioneering couple’s radical education model uses it much more creativelyEvery morning, students in Assam’s Pamohi village go to school clutching a bag of plastic waste, in exchange for which they will get their day’s lessons.Akshar School, founded by Mazin Mukhtar, 32, and his wife Parmita Sarma, 30, has turned its pupils into ecowarriors by...

Lord Goldsmith says Britain, the second biggest per capita producer of plastic waste, could play leading role in tackling crisisBritain has thrown its weight behind a new global agreement to tackle the plastic pollution crisis, which Lord Goldsmith said would go “far beyond” existing international agreements.This week, the Guardian revealed there is growing support for such a treaty internationally, but that neither the UK...

More than two-thirds of UN member states have declared they are open to a new agreement to stem the rising tide of plastic wasteSupport is growing internationally for a new global treaty to tackle the plastic pollution crisis, it has emerged, though so far without the two biggest per capita waste producers – the US and the UK – which have yet to signal...

Exposure is far higher than previously thought and also affects plastic food containersBottle-fed babies are swallowing millions of microplastic particles a day, according to research described as a “milestone” in the understanding of human exposure to tiny plastics.Scientists found that the recommended high-temperature process for sterilising plastic bottles and preparing formula milk caused bottles to shed millions of microplastics and trillions of even smaller...

Thirty times more plastic on ocean floor than surface, analysis suggests, but more trapped on land than seaAt least 14m tonnes of plastic pieces less than 5mm wide are likely sitting at the bottom of the world’s oceans, according to an estimate based on new research.Analysis of ocean sediments from as deep as 3km suggests there could be more than 30 times as much...

Major oil firms plan to grow plastic supply to counter impact of shift against fossil fuelsThe war on plastic waste could scupper the oil industry’s multi-billion dollar bet that the world will continue to need more fossil fuels to help make the petrochemicals used in plastics, according to a new report.Major oil companies, including Saudi Aramco and Royal Dutch Shell, plan to spend about...

Environmentalists fear changing Kenya’s resolve would lead to all of Africa becoming a plastics dumping groundMajor oil companies are lobbying the United States to pressure Kenya to change its world-leading stance against plastic waste, according to environmentalists who fear the continent will be used as a dumping ground.The request from the American Chemistry Council to the Office of the United States Trade Representative came...

As researchers, we have been shocked to find the most remote depths of the Pacific Ocean polluted by our plastic. And it will outlive us all.Another bottle. Yet another one. We are 200km from land, in the middle of the South Pacific, and this is the third bottle we’ve found already this morning.Everywhere is plastic. Continue reading...

Efforts to cut waste will reduce volume only by about 7%, say researchersPlastic waste flowing into the oceans is expected to nearly triple in volume in the next 20 years, while efforts to stem the tide have so far made barely a dent in the tsunami of waste, research shows. Governments could make drastic cuts to the flow of plastic reaching the oceans through...

A family were fishing on a lake in Wisconsin when they spotted a bear with a plastic jar stuck on its head. After several attempts at moving their boat next to the bear and removing the jar, they were finally able to free the animal. 'Never dreamt we would ever do this in our life time,' Tricia Hurt wrote on Facebook. 'Out on Marshmiller...