Researchers have made micro plastic measurements in the Atlantic Ocean for the first time. In the first 200 meters of the water layer, they estimate that there are approximately 12 to 21 million tons of waste.
Scientists have found bits of polystyrene in the guts of tiny, soil-dwelling organisms in the Antarctic, raising concern that micro-plastics pollution has already deeply entered the world's most remote land-based food systems.
The International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) has pledged to turn the tide on plastics with new guidelines set to reduce single-use plastic use among visitors to the white continent.
Plastic straws, drinks stirrers, and plastic-stemmed cotton buds will be banned in England from April 2020, British Environment Secretary Michael Gove said on Wednesday.
Single-use plastic items such as straws, forks and knives as well as cotton buds will be banned in the European Union by 2021 following a vote by EU lawmakers last Wednesday as the bloc pushes manufacturers to step up their recycling efforts.
A dead whale with 40 kilograms of plastic in its stomach has been discovered off the coast of the Philippines. Marine biologist Darrell Blatchley was called to recover the 4.7m Cuvier’s beaked whale, which was trapped in the shores of the Mabini Compostela Valley.
For the first time, Coca-Cola has revealed it used three million tons of plastic packaging in one year. It's part of a report by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation which is pushing for companies and governments to do more to tackle plastic pollution.
The amount of plastic washing up onto the shores of remote South Atlantic islands is ten times greater than it was a decade ago, according to new research published in the journal Current Biology. Scientists investigating plastics in seas surrounding the remote British Overseas Territories, including East Falkland, discovered they are invading these unique biologically-rich regions. This includes areas that are established or proposed Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).
The United Kingdom government has announced a package of funding and support for UK Overseas Territories. The new projects will see a scheme to reduce and monitor plastic pollution on the island of St Helena in the South Atlantic and a new data collecting and reporting system for Montserrat to help create long-term sustainable fisheries.
New footage of the devastating impact of plastic pollution on wildlife has been captured by a BBC team. Seabirds are starving to death on the remote Lord Howe Island, a crew filming for the BBC One documentary Drowning in Plastic has revealed. Their stomachs were so full of plastic there was no room for food.