plastic

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McDonald's Opts for Paper Straws That Can't Be Recycled

At least, not yet

(Newser) - McDonald's has ditched its plastic straws in favor of paper ones in the UK and Ireland —there's just one itty-bitty, teenie-weenie little problem: The paper straws can't be recycled. The fast-food company has called the new paper straws "eco-friendly," but, though the paper is...

5.6K Hotels to Take 'Next Logical Step' for Environment

InterContinental Hotels Group will phase out mini-toiletries in single-use plastic bottles

(Newser) - The owner of Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza hotels vowed in October to stop using plastic straws by the end of 2019. Now it's on to "the next logical step," per the New York Times . InterContinental Hotels Group has become the first global hotel brand to say...

New Trump Slogan: 'Make Straws Great Again'

And you can buy them for $15

(Newser) - President Trump's reelection campaign has a new slogan—or it's mentioned in an email, anyway. "Make Straws Great Again," reads a Friday missive from Trump campaign manager Brad Parscale. The email takes a stab at paper straws (they "don't work") before making its...

24-Year-Old Relaunches Device to Trap Ocean Plastic

After 4 months of repair, Boyan Slat's floating boom is back at it in the Pacific Ocean

(Newser) - A floating device designed to catch plastic waste has been redeployed in a second attempt to clean up a huge island of trash swirling in the Pacific Ocean between California and Hawaii. Boyan Slat, the 24-year-old creator of the Ocean Cleanup project, announced on Twitter that a 2,000-foot-long floating...

Everyone Wants These Bags. That Wasn't the Plan

Embarrassing messages on Vancouver store's plastic bags meant to stop bag use, not spur it

(Newser) - The plastic bags given out at East West Market were supposed to shame customers out of using them . Instead, they've become collectors' items of sorts, because customers think they're irreverently cool. Management had hoped the bags at the Vancouver store—designed with what the New York Times calls...

Other Countries Are Doing It. 'Canada Will Be One of Them'

Single-use plastics will be banned as early as 2021

(Newser) - Canada will ban single-use plastics as early as 2021, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday. Trudeau said the specific items to be banned will be determined based on a science-based review, but the government is considering items such as water bottles, plastic bags, and straws. "As early as 2021,...

When You Eat and Drink, There's a Hidden Ingredient

A study says we're consuming a lot of microplastics

(Newser) - You're ingesting a secret ingredient when you eat, drink, and breathe: microplastics. The question is, does it matter? A new study estimates that the average adult ingests at least 98,000 plastic particles annually, the Seattle Times reports. The particles apparently come from various sources including shellfish, sugar, salt,...

Australia's 'Last Unspoilt Paradise' Is Anything But

Researchers find 414M pieces of plastic debris on remote islands

(Newser) - Study after study has illustrated the insane amount of plastic clogging up our planet. But a new one focusing on Australia's Cocos Islands suggests we still may have greatly underestimated the problem. Researchers surveyed 88% of the total landmass of the remote islands considered "Australia's last...

Deepest Dive Ever Makes Sad Discovery
At 35K Feet, Divers
Make Grim Discovery
in case you missed it
May 18, 2019 12:35 PM CDT

At 35K Feet, Divers Make Grim Discovery

But explorer Victor Vescovo also makes history

(Newser) - Those candy wrappers you threw out? The deepest deep-sea dive ever may have just found them, the BBC reports. American explorer Victor Vescovo journeyed down a record 35,853 feet in the Pacific Ocean's Mariana Trench on May 1 and stumbled on two signs of human presence on Earth—...

Scientists: We've Found the 'Holy Grail' of Recycling

New material may lead to plastic that's easily recyclable

(Newser) - The "Holy Grail" of recycling may finally be here. Scientists at Berkeley Lab say they've found a new way to create plastics that are 100% recyclable, meaning they can be used, recycled, and re-used without losing value, Fox News reports. "Most plastics were never made to be...

Every Shrimp Tested Had Traces of Cocaine
Study of Shrimp Has
an Unwelcome Surprise
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
May 5, 2019 1:45 PM CDT

Study of Shrimp Has an Unwelcome Surprise

Every one tested in UK study had traces of cocaine

(Newser) - How's this for an unwelcome surprise in a study of freshwater shrimp: Every one tested in a study of 15 different sites in Britain's rural Suffolk County had traces of cocaine, reports the Guardian . Oh, and traces of the drug ketamine were widespread. Also showing up: a long-banned...

Hawaii Moves to Ban Restaurant Plastic

'Our state can once again take the lead in protecting our environment'

(Newser) - Hawaii would be the first state in the US to ban most plastics at restaurants under legislation that aims to cut down on waste that pollutes the ocean. Dozens of cities across the country have banned plastic foam containers, but Hawaii's measure would make it the first to do...

Philippines Horror: 'Most Plastic We Have Ever Seen in a Whale'

88 pounds of plastic found in dead whale that washed up on beach

(Newser) - A dead whale washed up on a Philippine beach was distressing enough, but museum workers have deemed what they found inside the creature's gut "disgusting." The BBC reports that the Cuvier's beaked whale turned up on the shoreline east of Davao City on Saturday, and when...

&#39;It&rsquo;s Everywhere&#39;: Plastic Found in Deepest Oceans
'We're Piling Our Crap'
in the Ocean's Depths
NEW STUDY
Feb 27, 2019 10:30 AM CST

'We're Piling Our Crap' in the Ocean's Depths

Shrimp in the deepest ocean trenches found to be contaminated by plastic

(Newser) - With more than 300 million tons of plastics produced each year, it's perhaps no surprise that some has made its way to the bottom of the world’s oceans. New deep-sea research published in the Royal Society Open Science journal has pulled up fragments of plastics in the deepest...

'People Would Be Outraged' by Teen's Find Off Calif. Coast

Alex Weber has pulled out more than 50K golf balls over the last two years

(Newser) - Two years ago, a central California teen began what NPR calls a "Sisyphean task"—hauling hundreds of pounds of golf balls off the ocean floor, only to have them reenter the sea as golfers from five nearby golf courses (including Pebble Beach) hit them right back in. Alex...

Swimmer Ends 'Very Disturbing' Journey

Benoit Lecomte has a message for the world

(Newser) - A swimmer's record-breaking effort may be on hold, but his warning endures: There's way too much plastic out there. Benoît "Ben" Lecomte set foot on Oahu, Hawaii on Monday, conclusively ending his dream of being the first swimmer to cross the Pacific Ocean, per CNN . A...

In Dead Whale's Belly, a Horrifying Collection of Plastic

Sperm whale found in Indonesia, world's No. 2 plastics polluter

(Newser) - A dead whale that washed ashore in eastern Indonesia had a large lump of plastic waste in its stomach, including drinking cups and flip-flops, reports the AP . The discovery caused concern among environmentalists and government officials in one of the world's largest plastic-polluting countries. Rescuers from Wakatobi National Park...

'First Evidence for Microplastics Inside Humans' Emerges

Plastic found in stool samples from people in 8 countries

(Newser) - It was only a matter of time. Scientists, following up research showing tiny particles of plastic in everything from bottled water to salt , say they've found "the first evidence for microplastics inside humans." All stool samples taken from eight participants of a small study by Environment Agency...

When You Sprinkle Salt, You're Getting More Than Salt

Microplastics infiltrate 90% of it, especially the stuff from Asia, say researchers

(Newser) - Just like with bottled water , over 90% of the world's table salt contains microplastics—enough that the average human ingests 2,000 pieces each year from salt alone, according to new research. It's been known for years that microplastics are present in salt, per Quartz , but the surprise...

Big Change Coming to Kroger, and It's Starting in Seattle

Supermarket chain to get rid of all plastic bags by 2025

(Newser) - The nation's largest grocery chain will be free of plastic bags at all of its nearly 2,800 stores by 2025. Kroger Co., which orders about 6 billion bags each year, will begin phasing out their use immediately at one of its chains based in Seattle, a city that'...

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