Oceans

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    Plastics Increase Acidity of the World’s Oceans, Study Finds

    Plastics Increase Acidity of the World’s Oceans, Study Finds

    The trillions of pieces of plastic that end up in Earth’s oceans each year are wreaking havoc on the hundreds of thousands of marine organisms who live there. Mammals like whales and smaller organisms like fish ingest plastic particles, which contain toxins that stay in the animals’ bodies and are passed along to the organisms […]

    Wax Worm Saliva Can Degrade Stubborn Plastic Within Hours, Scientists Find

    Wax Worm Saliva Can Degrade Stubborn Plastic Within Hours, Scientists Find

    What began as an infestation could be a surprising nature-based solution to the plastic pollution crisis.  In 2017, scientist and amateur beekeeper Federica Bertocchini found some unwanted intruders in one of her hives, wax-moth larvae that feed on beeswax. She took the worms out of her hive and placed them in a plastic bag. However, […]

    UN Agency Approves Controversial Deep-Sea Mining Tests

    UN Agency Approves Controversial Deep-Sea Mining Tests

    A UN agency has granted permission for a Canadian-based company to test out deep-sea mining.  The Metals Company (TMC) announced on September 7 that the International Seabed Authority (ISA) had given its subsidiary Nauru Ocean Resources Inc (NORI) the go-ahead to gather 3,600 tonnes of polymetallic nodules from the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, beginning […]