Climate change threat from plastic
Although plastic pollution does pose a major and growing danger to marine wildlife, ecosystems, fisheries, and human health, plastic is, unfortunately, not just a threat to our oceans. Plastic is also a major threat to our climate and our collective future, a fact overlooked in most climate change programs, including the important new Biden climate agenda.
Goa's Sal River Contaminated by Microplastics; Fish, Shellfish Laced with Polymers
Water, sediments and biota (animal and plant life) in the Sal river—a major water body in South Goa—are contaminated with microplastics (MPs), the most common being black MPs which are caused by the abrasion of motor vehicle tyres on road surfaces, a study has revealed.
Food companies “behind the curve” on plastic pollution, campaigners claim
Major food manufacturing and grocery retail companies that turn a blind eye to the risks related to plastic pollution could face legal action, warns environmental law charity Client Earth.
The Big Problem With Plastic
CR reveals where most of the plastic you throw away really ends up and explains what to do to limit its environmental harm.
Packaging generates a lot of waste – now Maine and Oregon want manufacturers to foot the bill for getting rid of it
Maine and Oregon have enacted the first state laws making companies that create consumer packaging, such as cardboard cartons, plastic wrap and food containers, responsible for the recycling and disposal of those products, too. Maine’s law takes effect in mid-2024, and Oregon’s follows in mid-2025.
California Aims to Ban Recycling Symbols on Things That Aren’t Recyclable
The well-known three-arrows symbol doesn’t necessarily mean that a product is actually recyclable. A new bill would limit the products allowed to feature the mark.
Baltimore Aspires to ‘Zero Waste’ But Recycles Only a Tiny Fraction of its Residential Plastic
Leaders here aspire to create a city with zero waste. But new research shows that Baltimore has only attained an estimated residential plastic recycling rate of 2.1 percent, far below the national average of about nine percent.
Corps will take closer look at Formosa plant's impact on environment, minority residents in St. James
Construction on an enormous $9.4 billion plastics plant proposed in St. James Parish must be delayed so the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can do a more extensive and lengthy review of the facility's impacts on the environment and nearby minority communities, a top Army official said Wednesday.
This company claims to help the world’s biggest corporations recycle. Activists say it’s greenwashing.
TerraCycle recycles everything from Solo cups to Febreze canisters, but are they doing more harm than good?
Study finds just 2.2% of Baltimore’s trashed plastic is recycled, while 47% is burned
Activists call on city and state leaders to ban the burning of single-use plastic at the BRESCO incinerator. DPW says that’s “not feasible.”
THE RECYCLING MYTH: BIG OIL’S SOLUTION FOR PLASTIC WASTE LITTERED WITH FAILURE
The collapse of Boise’s advanced recycling plan is not an isolated case. In the past two years, Reuters has learned, three separate advanced recycling projects backed by other major companies – in the Netherlands, Indonesia and the United States – have been dropped or indefinitely delayed because they were not commercially viable.
Mail-Back Recycling Schemes Don't Work Nearly As Well As You'd Like to Believe
A new lawsuit involving TerraCycle reveals greenwashing and nebulous claims.
Plastic Bag Ban Violators Getting Away with Breaking Law as Enforcers Check Out
State regulators charged with overseeing the ban on single-use plastic shopping bags are overwhelmed by complaints, with more than 300 reported violators yet to be checked on, data obtained by THE CITY shows.
WOMR’s Sustainable Practices: Judith Enck
Sustainable Practices interviews Judith Enck, founder of Beyond Plastics, on WOMR Podcasts.
Toward a Paris for Plastics
Investors encouraged to support policy advocacy as well as engage with investee companies to reduce plastic use and transition to circular economy.
Remove waste burning from Tonko’s clean-energy bill
The bill’s definition of the kinds of “clean energy” that would qualify for federal subsidies includes fossil fuels and the incineration of “post-recycled municipal waste,” food waste, lawn trimmings, and construction debris.
One Planet: 20 Companies Produce 55% Of The World’s Single-Use Plastic Waste -- Exxon & Dow Top The List
Twenty companies are responsible for producing over 50 percent of ‘throwaway’ single-use plastic that ends up as waste, according to the Minderoo Foundation's Plastic Waste Makers Index. ExxonMobil tops the list – contributing 5.9 million tonnes to global plastic waste – closely followed by US chemical company Dow and China’s Sinopec.
Chemical recycling won’t solve our plastics problem
The industry claims that this technological approach enables the true recycling of plastics back into the same kind of plastics. Unfortunately, despite the industry fanfare, chemical recycling is not a viable technology and is almost exclusively used to burn plastic waste as a heavily polluting, greenhouse gas emitting fuel.
We Now Know How Exxon Secretly Fights Crackdowns on Plastic Pollution
In a sting operation by Greenpeace UK, a top Exxon official admits Exxon's producing PFAS products and lobbying against anti-plastic laws.
NJ, Don’t believe the hype about advanced recycling
The U.S. is already littered with expensive, high-profile advanced recycling failures. We do not need another one of these polluting and ineffectual facilities sited in New Jersey.