02 Dec 2018
Chemical cocktail suppresses periwinkles’ ability to avoid crabs and disrupts food chain Toxins leaching from microplastics leave shellfish at the mercy of predators, research has found. The chemicals completely suppress the ability of the periwinkles to detect and avoid the crabs that eat them. Microplastics plague the world’s rivers and oceans and absorb poisonous chemicals from the […]
26 Nov 2018
Scientists have long known that tyres contribute to microplastic pollution, as wear on the roads releases microfibres into the environment, leading to increased plastic contamination of soils and waterways. Now a study from Friends of the Earth has sought to quantify the scale of the problem, estimating that UK vehicles release up to 68,000 tonnes […]
13 Jun 2018
In one of the first studies to determine potential sources of microplastics pollution, researchers have found that water samples from UK rivers contained significantly higher concentrations of microplastics downstream from wastewater treatment plants. Scientists from the University of Leeds measured microplastics concentrations up and downstream of the following six wastewater treatment plants and river catchments: […]
04 Jun 2018
An EU project led by the German Geomar Helmholtz Center for Ocean Research is looking for jellyfish with a talent for catching microplastics. The objective is to develop, test and promote a gelatinous solution to microplastic pollution by developing a microplastics filter (GoJelly) for commercial and public use. The main raw material would be jellyfish […]
26 Mar 2018
Guardian: Researchers find levels of plastic fibres in popular bottled water brands could be twice as high as those found in tap water The World Health Organisation (WHO) has announced a review into the potential risks of plastic in drinking water after a new analysis of some of the world’s most popular bottled water brands […]
14 Mar 2018
Microplastic contamination of the oceans is one of the world’s most pressing environmental concerns. The terrestrial component of the global microplastic budget is not well understood because sources, stores and fluxes are poorly quantified. We report catchment-wide patterns of microplastic contamination, classified by type, size and density, in channel bed sediments at 40 sites across […]
12 Sep 2017
An exclusive in last week’s Guardian reported microplastic contamination has been found in tap water in countries around the world, leading to calls from scientists for urgent research on the implications for health. Scores of tap water samples from more than a dozen nations were analysed by scientists for an investigation by Orb Media, who […]
22 Jul 2017
Check this carefully because there are at least four links to new Government information on plastics and microbeads. Also this is just one element of the Green Brexit speech give at WWF HQ. Defra ‘Environment Secretary Michael Gove pledged action to reduce plastic waste choking our oceans as he set out his ambition for […]
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