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Report calls for urgent action to tackle developing countries’ reliance on bottled waterFocusing on improving the water supply in developing nations could be a powerful way to fight the scourge of plastic waste in the oceans, experts have said, highlighting that the issue has received little attention.People in developing countries, and many middle-income countries, often rely on plastic bottles of water as their piped...

Study finds 800,000 extra fibres are shed than on standard washing machine settingDelicate wash cycles should be avoided whenever possible, according to scientists who found they can release hundreds of thousands more plastic microfibres into the environment than standard wash cycles.Researchers at Newcastle University ran tests with full-scale machines to show that a delicate wash, which uses up to twice as much water as...

Experts find no proof minuscule particles are a threat to health but say more research is neededMicroplastics are increasingly found in drinking water, but there is no evidence so far that this poses a risk to humans, according to a new assessment by the World Health Organization.However, the United Nations body warned against complacency because more research is needed to fully understand how plastic...