UK plastic waste exports to developing countries rose 84% in a year, data shows

Campaigners say increase in exports mostly to Malaysia and Indonesia is 'unethical and irresponsible waste imperialism'…

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/oct/08/uk-plastic-waste-exports-to-developing-countries-rose-84-in-a-year-data-shows

Buoyant, the size of a lentil and almost impossible to recover: how nurdles are polluting the oceans

Millions of the tiny plastic pellets are being washed up on the coast of Kerala in India in the latest in a series of global spills, as plastic treaty talks continue in Geneva…

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2025/aug/12/nurdles-kerala-india-microplastic-pellets-pollution-fishing-environment-law

 

Cancer's Up

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtxBNv5nA94

 

More than 400 chemicals in plastic products linked to breast cancer – study

Despite the known risks, plastic in general remains a little-regulated substance, largely because of the petrochemical and plastic industry's lobbying power. But regulation can be effective: the addition of some phthalates to California's Proposition 65 law, which targets toxic chemicals in consumer goods, broadly reduced the level of the dangerous compound in Californians' blood...

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/dec/06/plastic-chemicals-breast-cancer

Most US voters say plastics industry should be held responsible for recycling claims – report

Even a majority of Republicans support efforts to hold manufacturers accountable for allegedly deceptive claims…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/sep/09/us-voters-distrust-plastics-manufacturers-claims

Male fetuses' sex hormones can affect female siblings before they're even born : Shots - Health News : NPR

The Science of Siblings is a new series exploring the ways our siblings can influence us, from our money and our mental health all the way down to our very molecules. We'll be sharing these stories over the next several weeks...

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2024/04/09/1240906149/siblings-womb-brothers-sisters-sex-hormones

Europe is beating its addiction to plastics. Why is the US so far behind?

In Paris, and elsewhere in Europe, plastics are clearly on their way out and paper is in. The standard takeaway cup in coffee shops, juice bars and cafes serving hipster smoothies is paper, and when there is a straw, it's paper as well (or some other biodegradable non-plastic material). Delivery food orders arrive in paper cartons –some with a chic design touch that plastic could never replicate, unspooling like origami flowers to reveal the food within – in paper bags. Utensils, when requested, are wooden and wrapped in paper. And in grocery stores, bulk sections for pasta, nuts, dried fruit, cereals, rice and legumes are normal, as is putting those things (or your fruit and vegetables) in paper bags. 

Fast food chains such as Pret A Manger, which has opened in at least six European countries outside the UK, Exki, which has branches throughout the Benelux countries and France, and even McDonald's and Burger King serve food consumed on location in glass or other types of reusable packaging. Extended producer responsibility schemes (which hold companies to account for recapturing the packaging they produce) mean that plastic bottle caps no longer fully detach, increasing the likelihood that they too end up recycled…

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/sep/21/europe-is-beating-its-addiction-to-plastics-why-is-the-us-so-far-behind

 

Researchers turned superglue into a recyclable, cheap, oil-free plastic alternative

Because our superglue plastic has properties similar to polystyrene – it is light, durable, cheap and easy to mass-produce – it could replace polystyrene in many products. But there are two distinct benefits of our superglue-based material: It isn't made from oil and is easy to recycle...

https://theconversation.com/researchers-turned-superglue-into-a-recyclable-cheap-oil-free-plastic-alternative-202315

Rich Nations Are Burying the Developing World in Plastic Waste – Mother Jones

"Toxic chemicals from these plastics are poisoning communities," said Therese Karlsson, a science and technical adviser for the nonprofit International Pollutant Elimination Network, or IPEN...

https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2023/03/rich-countries-nations-waste-plastic-exports-chemical-contamination/

Democrats weigh first nationwide fee on plastic in U.S. budget negotiations | Reuters

… "That pollution chokes our oceans, hastens climate change, and threatens Americans' well-being, and it's the plastics industry that should cover the cost of the damage," Whitehouse said...

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/democrats-weigh-first-nationwide-fee-plastic-us-budget-negotiations-2021-09-29/

New plant-based plastics can be chemically recycled with near-perfect efficiency - The Academic Times

German chemists have developed two sustainable plastic alternatives to high-density polyethylene that can be chemically recycled more easily and nearly 10 times as efficiently, thanks to "break points" engineered into their molecular structures...
https://academictimes.com/new-plant-based-plastics-can-be-chemically-recycled-with-near-perfect-efficiency/

Global treaty to tackle plastic pollution gains steam without US and UK

Support is growing internationally for a new global treaty to tackle the plastic pollution crisis, it has emerged, though so far without the two biggest per capita waste producers – the US and the UK – which have yet to signal their participation...
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/nov/16/us-and-uk-yet-to-show-support-for-global-treaty-to-tackle-plastic-pollution

Canada is banning all plastic straws, cutlery by end of next year - The Hill

The country is aiming to achieve zero plastic waste by 2030.
https://thehill.com/changing-america/sustainability/environment/520071-canada-is-banning-all-plastic-straws-cutlery-by

Newly hatched Florida sea turtles are consuming dangerous quantities of floating plastic

Plastic pollution has been found in practically every environment on the planet, with especially severe effects on ocean life. Plastic waste harms marine life in many ways – most notably, when animals become entangled in it or consume it.
https://theconversation.com/newly-hatched-florida-sea-turtles-are-consuming-dangerous-quantities-of-floating-plastic-143785

The end of plastic? New plant-based bottles will degrade in a year

The end of plastic? New plant-based bottles will degrade in a year
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/may/16/the-end-of-plastic-new-plant-based-bottles-will-degrade-in-a-year

Report reveals ‘massive plastic pollution footprint’ of drinks firms

Four global drinks giants are responsible for more than half a million tonnes of plastic pollution in six developing countries each year, enough to cover 83 football pitches every day, according to a report. ...
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/mar/31/report-reveals-massive-plastic-pollution-footprint-of-drinks-firms

Coke and Pepsi sued for creating a plastic pollution ‘nuisance’

California environmental group says much of the tons of plastic in the oceans can be traced back to the 10 companies they are suing....
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/feb/27/california-plastic-pollution-lawsuit-coke-pepsi

Ann Telnaes: Our (over) use of plastics - The Washington Post: Opinion

This is how much plastic I used to make one cup of coffee during a recent hotel stay.....
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/2020/opinions/amp-stories/our-overuse-of-plastics/

America’s recycled plastic waste is clogging landfills, survey finds

Many facilities lack the ability to process ‘mixed plastics’, a category of waste that has virtually no market as new products ....
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/feb/18/americas-recycled-plastic-waste-is-clogging-landfills-survey-finds

Bill targets single-use plastics in push to make manufacturers responsible | TheHill

Two congressional Democrats are planning to roll out legislation that would fight plastic pollution by banning certain types of single-use containers and requiring manufacturers to use more recycled content in their packaging. The legislation from Sen. Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and Rep. Alan Lowenthal (D-Calif.), expected Tuesday, would ban plastic takeout bags, utensils and straws that cannot be recycled starting in 2022 and begin a nationwide container deposit system, mirroring programs in the Northeast and other parts of the country that pay consumers 10 cents for every returned beverage container.
https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/482396-bill-targets-single-use-plastics-in-push-to-make-manufacturers