Singapore, Singapore | AFP | Scientists said Wednesday they have come up with an environmentally-friendly method that uses artificial sunlight to transform plastic into power-generating chemicals, as countries worldwide battle to reduce waste. Huge quantities of plastic have piled up on land and been dumped in the sea across the …
Read More »Fossil fuels? Plastic? Trump says more is better
Monaca, United States | AFP | President Donald Trump has seen the future and it is oil. And plastic. Where most environmental scientists and most US allies fear that overuse of fossil fuels is driving the planet into crisis, the US president spies only opportunity. In a speech on Tuesday to …
Read More »RECYCLING: Coca-Cola and Pepsi agree
Coca-Cola, Pepsi tout plastic recycling in rare joint appearance Davos, Switzerland | AFP | The bosses of Coca-Cola and Pepsi promised Thursday that “huge progress” would be made by 2030 to reduce plastic waste, which contaminates humans, wildlife, and oceans. Soft drink archrivals James Quincey and Ramon Laguarta participated in …
Read More »Did 6kg of plastic ocean trash kill this whale?
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A dead sperm whale that washed ashore recently in a national park in Indonesia had nearly 6kg of plastic waste in its stomach, park officials say. Items found included 115 drinking cups, four plastic bottles, 25 plastic bags and two flip-flops. The discovery has caused …
Read More »Coca-Cola’s recycling company to collect plastic waste
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Coca-Cola Beverage Africa’s subsidiary, Plastic Recycling Industries (PRI) has unveiled a campaign of collecting plastic waste in Kampala and surrounding areas in a move to conserve the environment. The waste will be used to make other products such as chairs. Speaking at the launch …
Read More »New plastic can be recycled over and over
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A new kind of plastic can, when exposed to the right chemicals, break down into the same basic building blocks that it came from and be rebuilt again and again. The recyclable material is more durable than previous attempts to create reusable plastics, researchers …
Read More »‘Top bottled water brands Aqua, Dasani contaminated with plastic particles’
Miami, United States | AFP | The world’s leading brands of bottled water are contaminated with tiny plastic particles that are likely seeping in during the packaging process, according to a major study across nine countries published Wednesday. “Widespread contamination” with plastic was found in the study, led by microplastic …
Read More »Scientists breed caterpillars that can eat polythene bags
KAVERA: The Very Hungry Caterpillar joins fight against plastic pollution Polyethylene Paris, France | AFP | A moth caterpillar commonly bred to provide fish bait feasts on a notoriously resistant plastic, scientists reported Monday, raising hopes the creature can help manage the global problem of plastic-bag pollution. “This discovery could be …
Read More »The dirt on plastic waste
By Marino Xanthos Current usage patterns of so-called `petroleum-based commodity thermoplastics’ are not sustainable Plastics are everywhere. Whether used to store leftovers, keep hospital equipment sterile, or insulate a home, plastics are unmatched for their adaptability, durability, and low cost. Given their seemingly boundless benefits, it is unsurprising that plastics …
Read More »