Zapping Microplastics Out of Our Waterways With Pulsing Ultrasound Waves
Microplastic particles, less than 5 mm wide, pose potential harm to aquatic life and humans as they pervade waterways worldwide. Researchers have developed a two-stage…
Microplastics News
Experiment Proves Bacteria Really Eat Plastic – Broken Down Into Harmless Substances
Laboratory experiment shows that bacteria really eat and digest plastic. The bacterium Rhodococcus ruber eats and actually digests plastic. This has been shown in laboratory…
99% Efficiency: Princeton Engineers Have Developed a New Way To Remove Microplastics From Water
Princeton Engineering researchers have developed a cost-effective way to use breakfast foods to create a material that can remove salt and microplastics from seawater. The…
57% of Species: Startling Numbers of Small Mammals Are “Plastic Positive”
More than half of the species investigated had traces of plastic in their excrement, according to researchers looking into how much plastic small mammals in…
New Method Allows Scientists To Remove 95% of Nanoplastics
Scientists Use Apples To Remove Nanoplastics Ecosystems are known to accumulate microplastics, and the breakdown of microplastics produces nanoplastics. Nanoplastics are plastic particles that are…
Startling Finding: The Majority of Nigerian Drinking Water Is Contaminated With Microplastics
A new study investigates whether microplastics are pervasive in Nigerian drinking water About 90% of the drinking water in Nigeria comes from boreholes, which are…
Plastic Pollution in the Ocean May Harbor Novel Antibiotics
Many environmentalists point to plastic pollution in the ocean as a large and growing problem, pointing to the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and how even…
Everyday Plastic Products – Such As Coffee Cups – Release Trillions of Microscopic Particles Into Water
Plastics are all around us, whether it’s the grocery bags we use at the supermarket or household items such as shampoo and detergent bottles. Plastics…
Science Made Simple: What Are Microplastics?
Microplastics are small plastic pieces less than five millimeters long which can be harmful to our ocean and aquatic life. Plastic is the most prevalent…
Tiny Plastic Particles From the Atmosphere Are Polluting Earth’s Oceans
In a new study, an international team of researchers investigates the atmosphere as a relevant source of plastic pollution in our planet’s waters. According to…
Microplastics Can Carry Parasites to Ocean, Affecting Wildlife and Human Health
Pathogens Can Hitch a Ride on Plastic To Reach the Sea According to a new study by the University of California, Davis, microplastics are a…
The Global “Plastic Flood” – Even the High North Arctic Ocean Can’t Escape Microplastic Pollution
A new AWI-led study shows: there is now a concerning degree of plastic pollution in the Arctic Ocean. Even the High North can’t escape the…
Oops! Scientists May Be Contaminating Their Own Samples With Microplastics
More than 70% of microplastics found in samples from oceans and rivers could come from the scientists collecting them. Are scientists contaminating their own samples?…
Microplastic Discovered in “Pristine” High-Altitude Pyrenees Mountain Air
Previously detected in rivers, oceans, and snow, microplastic has now been found in the high-altitude air surrounding the Pic du Midi (2,877 m)—by an international…
People With Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) Have More Microplastics in Their Feces
Microplastics — tiny pieces of plastic less than 5 mm in length – are everywhere, from bottled water to food to air. According to recent…
Transforming the Plastic Lifecycle Into a Circle
360 million metric tonnes of new plastic was produced in 2018. Here’s where it all went, and why the world must transform plastic use from…
How Is It Raining Plastic?! [Video]
Every year, more than 1,000 tons of plastic rain down onto national parks and wilderness areas in the western U.S. In this week’s episode, we…
The Mysterious Ocean Plastic Sink: Gone With the Rivers
Plastics are a growing problem for natural ecosystems around the globe, and in particular for our marine and freshwater environments. Rivers are the leading source…