Poll: People Want Action on Plastics for Health and Wildlife
NRDC onEarth
APRIL 15, 2024
New poll results show overwhelming public support for government action to address the plastic crisis, including a strong global plastics treaty.
What you need to know about the plastic crisis
NRDC onEarth
APRIL 9, 2024
Our addiction to plastics imperil our health and the well being of the planet.
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Manufacturing Sustainability Surge: Your Guide to Data-Driven Energy Optimization & Decarbonization
Trending Sources
Plastic will destroy us in nine years
Inhabitat - Innovation
OCTOBER 25, 2021
Now word from the Plastic Health Summit 2021 is that we have nine years to save the world from irreparable plastic-wrought damage. While most of us have been focusing on goals related to decreasing CO2 levels in the atmosphere, a subset of scientists have been eying another villain.
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What happens to biodegradable plastics if they enter the sea? New study
Envirotec Magazine
JANUARY 15, 2024
Plymouth Marine Laboratory writes Our new study investigates what happens when biodegradable plastics enter the ocean, and whether these increasingly popular alternatives to conventional plastics are safer for marine ecosystems, or whether they come with their own risks. million metric tons in 2023 to almost 5.3
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Chemicals used in plastic food packaging linked to 10% of preterm births in 2018
Grist
FEBRUARY 8, 2024
A class of chemicals commonly used in plastic food containers and cosmetic products may have caused about 10 percent of the United States’ preterm births in 2018, according to a study from environmental health experts at New York University. Phthalate exposure is just one way the plastics industry externalizes harms.
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Bottled water has up to 100 times more plastic particles than previously thought
Grist
JANUARY 9, 2024
A paper published Monday used a novel technique to analyze one-liter samples of bottled water for plastic granules, going down to just 50 to 100 nanometers in length — roughly the width of a virus. Until now, scientists lacked a quick and efficient way to identify nanoplastics, hindering research on their health and environmental impacts.
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Beyond the bale: Viridor unveils plan to eliminate waste plastic exports
Envirotec Magazine
DECEMBER 6, 2021
Viridor says its soon-to-be-opened Avonmouth plastics recycling plant will reprocess over 80,0000 tonnes of plastic, creating recycled raw material ready to be returned to the economy. The circular economy for plastics report highlights the significant role that recycling plastics can play in ensuring the UK achieves net zero.
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The hidden challenge: Have you defined plastic?
GreenBiz
FEBRUARY 2, 2022
Instead of focusing just on fossil fuel-reliance or just on waste, look more holistically at environmental and human health concerns across the life cycle to prevent unintended consequences.
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Pathogens hitch a ride on plastic
Envirotec Magazine
JULY 4, 2022
Microplastics are a pathway for pathogens on land to reach the ocean, with likely consequences for human and wildlife health, according to a study from the University of California , Davis. It found that microplastics can make it easier for disease-causing pathogens to concentrate in plastic-contaminated areas of the ocean.
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Studying tiny plastics in the air
Envirotec Magazine
SEPTEMBER 5, 2022
Large pieces of plastic can break down into nanosized particles that often find their way into soil and water. It’s unclear how nanoplastics impact human health, but animal studies suggest they’re potentially harmful. In experiments, nanoscale plastic particles were aerosolized, making them float in the air.
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Frontline Communities Launch Hunger Strike to Protest Plastics Giant Formosa
DeSmogBlog
OCTOBER 30, 2023
Communities around the world impacted by the plastics giant Formosa are launching a global hunger strike on October 31. In 2019, nearly 8,000 victims of the spill filed a lawsuit in Taiwan against Formosa Plastics Group. Formosa Plastics Corporation, U.S.A. One was arrested just a month ago.” People can make a difference.”
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Why the Oil and Chemical Lobby Is Taking Aim at New York’s Plastic Waste Bill
DeSmogBlog
MARCH 6, 2024
Last week at the New York State Capitol, more than 300 advocates joined lawmakers for a rally to urge the passage of a landmark waste reduction bill that proponents say is the best piece of legislation in the country aimed at lessening plastic trash. Thankfully they have not succeeded so far.”
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"FORGO" plastic packaging with powder to liquid hand wash
Inhabitat - Innovation
APRIL 8, 2020
Plastic containers line nearly every shelf of any health and beauty aisle. To tackle this earth-endangering practice, Stockholm-based design studio Form Us With Love set out to make personal care more sustainable with their first product in this endeavor, FORGO powdered hand soap.
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Greenpeace US Responds to Fossil Fuel Industry Plans to Grow Plastic Demand
Green Living Guy
FEBRUARY 2, 2022
The externalities from plastic pollution result in severe health and environmental harm globally. Yet, the fossil fuel industry aims to increase the demand for plastic over the next decade. The post Greenpeace US Responds to Fossil Fuel Industry Plans to Grow Plastic Demand appeared first on Green Living Guy.
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How to Banish Single-Use Plastic From Your Life
The Environmental Blog
FEBRUARY 14, 2020
Every plastic cup, bottle, bag, or packaging that you’ve ever thrown away is in a landfill or in the ocean right now, with the exception of a few that might have made it through the recycling process. But plastic has to go somewhere, and since it’s not biodegradable at all, it doesn’t just simply disappear. Royalty Free Photo.
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Illegal Smuggling of Plastic is Harming Cameroon’s Environment
Green Living Guy
SEPTEMBER 22, 2022
21 SEP 2022 / BY OLUWOLE OJEWALE The smuggling of prohibited plastic into Cameroon threatens the environment, public health, and the agricultural sector. The post Illegal Smuggling of Plastic is Harming Cameroon’s Environment appeared first on The Green Living Guy.
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Comment: Puzzling out a solution to plastic and POPs
Envirotec Magazine
OCTOBER 12, 2021
In-feed plastics ready for processing at the Axion facility in Salford. Growing pressure to transition to the circular economy and the desire to eliminate legacy additives is proving to be a conundrum for the plastics recycling sector. The material is converted into a proprietary recycled polymer. Legally, POPS waste must be destroyed.
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Using ‘recycled plastic’ in construction materials may not be a great idea after all
Grist
AUGUST 10, 2023
Last month, the American Chemistry Council, a petrochemical industry trade group, sent out a newsletter highlighting a major new report on what it presented as a promising solution to the plastic pollution crisis: using “recycled” plastic in construction materials. This already happens with materials that don’t have plastics in them.)
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European Sustainable Plastics Summit 2023
Energy Central
JULY 5, 2023
European Sustainable Plastics Summit 2023 Background The increasing global production and use of plastics have led to plastic pollution becoming a major global environmental and health concern. Plastic waste accumulates on land and in the oceans, causing serious impacts on wildlife, ecosystems and human health.
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Microplastics from textiles damage lung cells, finds study
Envirotec Magazine
FEBRUARY 24, 2021
Speaking on The Plastic Health Channel the researchers unveiled findings which appear to reveal that microfibres from textiles may be harming lung growth, development, and repair. The study saw pregnant rats exposed to nanoplastics via inhalation before scientists measured the amount of plastic in both the maternal and foetal tissues.
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Turning Plastic into Hydrogen Fuel ~ The Role of Green Chemistry and Salts
Hydrogen Fuel News
FEBRUARY 6, 2024
A closer look at CIC energiGUNE innovative patent system for producing hydrogen fuel from plastic materials. CIC energiGUNE has pioneered an innovative catalytic system that uses ionic liquids to generate hydrogen from plastic waste. This hydrogen can then be used as a clean and sustainable energy source.
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New report finds entire lifecycle of plastics a threat to human health
Green Living Guy
NOVEMBER 26, 2020
February 19, 2019 at 6AM ET, Washington, DC – A new report from the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) examines the health impacts associated with plastic pollution crisis. The post New report finds entire lifecycle of plastics a threat to human health appeared first on Green Living Guy.
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Boiling tap water helps remove microplastics, says study
Envirotec Magazine
FEBRUARY 29, 2024
While many creative strategies have been attempted to get rid of these plastic bits, one unexpectedly effective solution for cleaning up drinking water, specifically, might be as simple as brewing a cup of tea or coffee. Then, the team measured the free-floating plastic content. Image credit: Eddy Zeng.
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All that plastic in the ocean is a climate change problem, too
Grist
OCTOBER 17, 2022
When you think of plastic pollution, you might imagine ocean “ garbage patches ” swirling with tens of millions of plastic bottles and shopping bags. Microplastics — tiny plastic fragments that are less than 5 millimeters in diameter, a little less than one-third the size of a dime — have become ubiquitous in the environment.
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A Texas Shrimper Led a Fight to Stop Plastic Pollution. Now She’s Won the “Green Nobel Prize”
DeSmogBlog
APRIL 24, 2023
Wilson’s $50 million settlement with Formosa Plastics Corp. – Her remarkable achievement and ongoing commitment to fighting plastic pollution demonstrates the power of grassroots action to create concrete change.” A state wastewater discharge permit barred Formosa Plastics from discharging the nurdles into local waters.
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The Best Sustainable Health and Personal Care Products
Green Living Guy
OCTOBER 15, 2021
The post The Best Sustainable Health and Personal Care Products appeared first on Green Living Guy. With so much impact coming from the production of goods, many consumers are looking for alternatives that are more sustainable and greener. If you are someone looking to make that switch, here are products that you can swap out […].
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Campaign aims to reduce and reuse Europe’s 2.5 million tonnes of plastic appearing in e-waste each year
Envirotec Magazine
OCTOBER 10, 2019
European Commission-funded project with UN support urges consumersto favour products containing plastics recycled from electronic waste. Philips and Whirlpool among first firms offering support by designing products to use more recycled plastic, ease plastic reuse at product end-of-life.
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Ecosystems for good: How collaborator networks achieve sustainability
GreenBiz
JULY 6, 2021
One key area where this can have an impact is plastic recycling. Around 90 percent of plastic used is not recycled — and reducing this number is crucial to achieving SDG 12: Responsible consumption and production. . Promote good health and wellbeing. Provide access to clean water. Shockingly, 2.2
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That ocean breeze may be full of tiny bits of plastic
Grist
MAY 28, 2020
Want to know how much plastic is entering the ocean every year? But there’s an even more puzzling question for researchers who study plastic in the ocean: Where has it all gone? But there’s an even more puzzling question for researchers who study plastic in the ocean: Where has it all gone?
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Plastic Bank: Over 200 firms help prevent two billion plastic bottles from polluting oceans
Business Green
JANUARY 24, 2022
Social enterprise claims it was worked with 30,000 collectors to reintegrate plastic back into manufacturing supply chains. Plastic pollution and its impact on our oceans is one of the world's most significant challenges," said Plastic Bank founder and CEO David Katz.
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First demonstration that forests trap airborne microplastics
Envirotec Magazine
MARCH 28, 2024
Airborne microplastics are tiny plastic particulates (less than 100 µm) that become suspended in the atmosphere and dispersed throughout the environment, but it has been unclear where they end up. Crucially, previous studies that used only the first two methods may have underestimated the number of plastics adhering to leaf surfaces.
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Brazilian group presents novel method of analyzing microplastic pollution
Envirotec Magazine
MARCH 6, 2023
The last decade has seen some progress with studying plastic pollution, but there are still significant challenges, such as a lack of comparability of reported results, especially when it comes to microplastic particles. River landscape in Pantanal, Brazil. We measure particle size in all samples.
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Sustainability Guide for Retail: Plastic Bag Alternatives
Green Business Bureau
SEPTEMBER 19, 2019
Retailers need to make the switch from plastic shopping bags to eco-friendly alternatives. Plastic bags are not biodegradable and can last over a 1000 years. Plastic bags are so lightweight that they can travel long distances through the wind and water. Customers demand non-plastic alternatives. Stop harming wildlife.
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Official: Distribution of supermarket single-use plastic bags down 97 per cent
Business Green
AUGUST 1, 2022
Number of single-use plastic bags supplied by supermarkets has fallen 97 per cent since the 2015 introduction of the plastic bag charge tax. The charge was last year increased to 10p per plastic bag and extended to all UK retailers. There is much more to do to tackle the problem of plastic waste.
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Plastics: Consumer goods giants agree industry principles for chemical-based recycling methods
Business Green
APRIL 13, 2022
A clutch of the world's largest consumer goods companies, including Mars, Nestle, Danone and Unilever, have united behind a set of principles for safe and environmentally responsible chemical recycling of plastic waste, arguing that such methods have a role to play in combatting the global plastics pollution crisis.
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5 opportunities of a circular economy
GreenBiz
MARCH 5, 2021
For example, shifting towards recycled materials would alleviate the need to produce virgin plastics and synthetic fibers, which would significantly reduce fossil fuel use and associated emissions. The world produces around 300 million tons of plastic waste every year, nearly equivalent to the weight of the entire human population.
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Researchers add detail to understanding how micro- and nanoplastics move through the environment
Envirotec Magazine
APRIL 30, 2021
The fundamental mechanisms that allow tiny pieces of plastic bags and foam packaging at the nanoscale to move through the environment seem to have been described in more detail by researchers at Washington State University. ” Around since the 1950s, plastics have properties that make them useful for modern society.
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Plastic disclosures to be added to CDP's environmental reporting platform
Business Green
SEPTEMBER 22, 2022
Annual environmental questionnaires sent by CDP to corporates set to feature questions on plastic consumption. Environmental reporting platform CDP has announced it is to start collecting data about companies' use of plastics, in a bid to provide greater visibility over how corporates are contributing to the global plastic pollution crisis.
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Environment Agency warns construction sector over illegal plastic waste exports
Business Green
JULY 30, 2021
Environment Agency said it stopped hundreds of containers carrying plastic waste from illegally being shipped abroad last year. I would strongly urge businesses to observe their legal responsibility to ensure waste is processed appropriately, so we can protect human health and the environment now and for future generations.
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Report proposes global treaty to end production of virgin plastic production by 2040
Business Green
JULY 2, 2021
International group of scientists call for new plastics non-proliferation treaty that binds governments to ambitious target to phase out virgin plastic. Scientists are calling for a binding treaty to phase out global production of virgin plastic by 2040.
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Dropps offers chemical-, dye- and plastic-free laundry and dishwashing products
Inhabitat - Innovation
DECEMBER 27, 2019
In a world where it’s becoming increasingly difficult to find products free of harsh chemicals, it’s refreshing to discover a company focused on creating simple household supplies that do the job without endangering the health of humans or the planet.
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Navigating Europe’s restriction on microplastics
Envirotec Magazine
JANUARY 25, 2024
The problem with microplastics Microplastics are solid plastic particles composed of mixtures of polymers and functional additives that measure less than 5 mm and may contain residual impurities. trillion pieces of plastic, with a further 33 billion pounds of plastic entering every year. [i]
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Microfibres in the Mediterranean are floating homes for bacteria
Envirotec Magazine
DECEMBER 1, 2022
Synthetic and natural microfibres from plastic pollution, the textile industry and fishing activities have increased dramatically in the environment, becoming the most common type of particles in the ocean. This new study is seemingly the first to report the presence of pathogenic Vibrio species on microfibres in the Mediterranean Sea.
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