Quick Dips
Curated topical articles on the Blue Economy

The future of the plastics industry is green

Mikhail Karisalov, World Economic Forum Plastics & Pollution

The transition to a green economy will impact the global petrochemical industry.

We need a systems-level approach from companies and governments worldwide to address plastic and protect our environment.

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U.S. Continues to Ship Illegal Plastic Waste to Developing Countries

Tiffany Duong, EcoWatch Plastics & Pollution Shipping & Ports

The majority of the world is working together to reverse the massive plastic pollution problem. But, the world's leading producer of plastic waste, the U.S., isn't on board and isn't following the rules.

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Covid-19 worsened the single-use plastics problem. Here’s why it could also fuel solutions

Melissa Repko & Emma Newburger, CNBC Plastics & Pollution

The pandemic disrupted retailers’ efforts to reduce use of non-recyclable plastics, from grocery bags to plastic forks.

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6 environmental documentaries we all need to see

Adrian Lobb, The Big Issue Plastics & Pollution

Ahead of Global Recycling Day, we take a look at some of the most vital environmental documentaries ever made.

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Plastic bags recycled into fabric to fight pollution

Helen Briggs, BBC Plastics & Pollution

Scientists have made fabrics from polythene in a move they say could reduce plastic pollution and make the fashion industry more sustainable.

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California Lawmakers Propose Package of New Laws Tackling Plastic Waste Reduction

Senator Ben Allen, California Plastics & Pollution

While celebrating advocacy for protection of natural resources during Ocean Day at the State Capitol, legislators announced a package of bills to address the mounting waste crisis affecting California’s coastline, landfills, and ratepayers.

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Could plastic roads make for a smoother ride?

Chermaine Lee, BBC Energy Solutions Plastics & Pollution

From lower carbon emissions to fewer potholes, there are a number of benefits to building a layer of plastic into roads.

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5 Not-So-Fun Facts About Plastics in the Arctic

Sarah Bobbe, Ocean Conservancy Plastics & Pollution

Even the remote Arctic marine ecosystem has a plastics problem.

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Where does plastic pollution go when it enters the ocean?

Sutherland, B. et al., The Conversation Plastics & Pollution

Of the hundreds of millions of tonnes of plastic waste we produce each year, it’s estimated that around ten million tonnes enters the ocean.

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Dispatch: eXXpedition's First Virtual Voyage is Complete

Plastic Pollution Coalition Plastics & Pollution

Jackie Nuñez, Founder of The Last Plastic Straw and Advocacy Program Manager at Plastic Pollution Coalition, was selected to embark on leg 15 of the eXXpedition, an all-women voyage to document plastic pollution in the world’s oceans.

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Hidden pollution from shipping threatens sustainable ocean efforts

University of Portsmouth, Phys Org Plastics & Pollution Shipping & Ports

Ships are the polluting 'elephants in the room' nobody is talking about despite a global drive to make oceans cleaner, according to new research.

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Chemistry can help make plastics sustainable — but it isn’t the whole solution

Editorial, Nature Plastics & Pollution

How to make plastics less harmful is an urgent question in chemistry — and must be for policy, too.

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How Can Governments and Economies Prevent Ghost Gear?

Ingrid Giskes, Ocean Conservancy Plastics & Pollution

Like all of the threats that face our ocean, ghost gear is a problem that does not recognize borders. A piece of fishing gear that snags on a ship in Canada can travel hundreds of miles before finding its way to a reef in Mexico, where it can “ghost fish” for decades on end.

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Is It Possible to Forever Rid the World of Single-Use Plastic Bags?

Edith Cecchini, Ocean Conservancy Plastics & Pollution

Four takeaways from Ocean Conservancy’s engagement with the Beyond the Bag Initiative.

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Coca-Cola company trials first paper bottle

BBC News Plastics & Pollution

Coca-Cola is to test a paper bottle as part of a longer-term bid to eliminate plastic from its packaging entirely.

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How Paving with Plastic Could Make a Dent in the Global Waste Problem

Ann Parson, Yale Environment 360 Plastics & Pollution

Roads in which waste plastic is melted down and mixed with paving materials are becoming more common around the world. Although for now they remain a niche technology, experts say the roads could become one of a diverse array of uses for discarded plastic.

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As Plastic Pollution in Rivers Gets Worse, Species Are Increasingly Living on Litter

E360 Digest, Yale School of the Environment Plastics & Pollution

Scientists have long warned that the world’s major rivers and estuaries are hotspots for plastic waste, as trash and microparticles wash down tributaries and congregate before entering oceans. 

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Artificial intelligence software detects ocean plastics from the air

Nick Lavars, New Atlas Plastics & Pollution

As millions of tons of plastic wash into the ocean everyday, scientists have their work cut out for them in trying to keep tabs on its whereabouts, but they may soon have a useful new tool at the their disposal.

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MARLIT, an artificial intelligence-based app to study floating marine macro-litter

Recerca, University of Barcelona Plastics & Pollution

A team of the Faculty of Biology and the IRBio presents an app based on an algorithm designed with artificial intelligence techniques to automate the study and quantification of floating plastics in the sea through aerial photography.

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Recycling Myth of the Month: Plastic waste is not just a 'developing country problem'

Emily Petsko, Oceana Plastics & Pollution

When the subject of plastic pollution comes up in the United States, Europe, or other Western countries, many people’s first instinct is to dodge responsibility and pass the blame onto other nations.

 

Read more → (5 minute read)