plastics
Washington (AFP) - Bottled water is up to a hundred times worse than previously thought when it comes to the number of tiny plastic bits it contains, a new study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences said Monday. Using a recently invented technique, scientists counted on average 240,000 detectable fragments of plastic per liter of water in popular brands -- between 10-100 times higher than prior estimates -- raising potential health concerns that require further study. "If people are concerned about nanoplastics in bottled water, it's reasonable to consider alternatives like t...
AFP
Washington (AFP) - The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Thursday announced a review that could eventually lead to the end of PVC plastic production -- impacting everything from records to rubber ducks. Vinyl chloride, which is used in the manufacturing and processing of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), was officially classified as a human carcinogen in 1974 and banned in hair sprays, refrigerants, cosmetics and drugs. It is the same chemical that burned in a tower of black smoke over an Ohio town where a train derailed earlier this year. But it continues to be widely used to make PVC wate...
AFP
Washington (AFP) - Plastic recycling rates are declining even as production shoots up, according to a Greenpeace USA report out Monday that blasted industry claims of creating an efficient, circular economy as "fiction." Titled "Circular Claims Fall Flat Again," the study found that of 51 million tons of plastic waste generated by US households in 2021, only 2.4 million tons were recycled, or around five percent. After peaking in 2014 at 10 percent, the trend has been decreasing, especially since China stopped accepting the West's plastic waste in 2018. Virgin production -- of non-recycled pl...
AFP
Washington (AFP) - Packing material, disposable cutlery, CD cases: Polystyrene is among the most common forms of plastic, but recycling it isn't easy and the vast majority ends up in landfills or finds its way to the oceans where it threatens marine life. Scientists at Australia's University of Queensland have now discovered that superworms -- the larvae of Zophobas morio darkling beetles -- are eager to dine on the substance, and their gut enzymes could hold the key to higher recycling rates. Chris Rinke, who led a study that was published in the journal Microbial Genomics on Thursday, told A...
AFP
Washington (AFP) - The United States will phase out single-use plastics in national parks and other public lands over the next decade, President Joe Biden's administration announced Wednesday as part of actions on World Oceans Day. This will include the sale and distribution of plastic bags and bottles as well as food wrappers, beverage cups and other tableware, according to an order by the interior secretary Deb Haaland. Government departments have one year to develop plans to switch over to alternatives, such as biodegradable and compostable materials, and then have until 2032 to complete th...
AFP
Los Angeles (AFP) - California launched a sweeping investigation Thursday into plastic pollution by major oil companies, in a probe it says will look at whether fossil fuel giants have been lying about the problem for decades. As part of the wide-ranging probe, the state's attorney general hit ExxonMobil with a subpoena with the aim of uncovering its role in an alleged cover-up. "Enough is enough. For more than half a century, the plastics industry has engaged in an aggressive campaign to deceive the public, perpetuating a myth that recycling can solve the plastics crisis," said Rob Bonta, the...
AFP
Los Angeles (AFP) - California launched a sweeping investigation Thursday into plastic pollution by major oil companies, in a probe it says will look at whether fossil fuel giants have been lying about the problem for decades. As part of the wide-ranging probe, the state's attorney general hit ExxonMobil with a subpoena with the aim of uncovering its role in an alleged cover-up. "Enough is enough. For more than half a century, the plastics industry has engaged in an aggressive campaign to deceive the public, perpetuating a myth that recycling can solve the plastics crisis," said Rob Bonta, the...
AFP
Washington (AFP) - Most plastic "advanced recycling" plants in the United States aren't actually recycling plastic but instead converting it into a dirty fuel, while producing toxic waste in low-income communities, a study by a leading environmental group said Monday. Advanced recycling, also known as chemical recycling, is a relatively new technique touted by industry groups that breaks plastic down to its molecular building blocks. It is said to be able to recapture more than traditional "mechanical" recycling that involves chopping plastic up and processing it into pellets to make new prod...
AFP
Washington (AFP) - The United States is by far the biggest contributor to global plastic waste in the world, according to a new report submitted to the federal government Wednesday that called for a national strategy to tackle the growing crisis. Overall, the US contributed around 42 million metric tons (MMT) in plastic waste in 2016 -- more than twice as much as China and more than the countries of the European Union combined, according to the analysis. On average, every American generates 130 kilograms (286 pounds) of plastic waste per year, with Britain next on the list at 99 kilos per per...
AFP
Washington (AFP) - The United States is by far the biggest contributor to global plastic waste in the world, according to a new report submitted to the federal government Wednesday that called for a national strategy to tackle the growing crisis. Overall, the US contributed around 42 million metric tons (MMT) in plastic waste in 2016 -- more than twice as much as China and more than the countries of the European Union combined, according to the analysis. On average, every American generates 130 kilograms (286 pounds) of plastic waste per year, with Britain next on the list at 99 kilos per per...
AFP
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