30 May 2023

The second high-level round of negotiations organised by the United Nations on the way to achieving a global treaty against plastic pollution are underway in Paris. The meeting aims to lay the groundwork for the “Zero Draft” of the proposed treaty text, and therefore provides a critical opportunity to engage stakeholder organisations with ministers and […]

09 May 2023

A United Nations report highlights the opportunities the ocean holds and charts a course to sustainably use marine resources. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Trade and Environment Review 2023, published on 8 May, analyses the world’s ocean economy – worth an estimated $3-6 trillion – and assesses how human activity and multiple […]

14 Mar 2023

Plastic pollution in the world’s oceans has reached “unprecedented levels” over the past 15 years, a new study has found, calling for a legally binding international treaty to stop the harmful waste. Ocean plastic pollution is a persistent problem around the globe — animals may become entangled in larger pieces of plastic like fishing nets, or […]

06 Mar 2023

New research now shows that seabirds are suffering from a plastic-induced illness named ‘plasticosis’, the Natural History Museum has said. Rather than being caused by viruses or bacteria, ‘plasticosis’ is caused by small pieces of plastic which inflame the digestive tract. Over time, persistent inflammation causes tissues to become scarred and deformed, with knock-on effects on growth, digestion […]

10 Jan 2023

Single-use items such as plastic cutlery, plates and trays are to be banned in England in a bid to reduce pollution, the government has confirmed. Plastic items relating to takeaway food and drink, including food containers and cutlery, make up the largest share of litter in the world’s oceans, according to research, the Guardian has reported. Now the […]

20 Dec 2022

People in Scotland believe sewage and chemical pollution pose the biggest threat to the health of our seas, according to new research. The opinion poll, conducted by Survation on behalf of the environmental coalition Scottish Environment LINK, also found high levels of public concern over litter and the impact of climate change on our seas. […]

29 Nov 2022

The first session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee (INC) to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment, will take place in Uruguay from 28 November to 2 December 2022.     The Uruguay meeting comes after the parties at the UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi in March agreed to […]

24 Nov 2022

New research from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), in conjunction with partners from Austria and the Netherlands, has highlighted an unseen issue with plastic pollution: The researchers have found that the amount of plastic pollution may be under-reported, and we are suffering from multiple blind spots regarding the amount of plastic in our waterways. The researchers suspect […]