Oceans

By Andy Rowell The Japanese Coast Guard has confirmed that the oil that is being washed up on islands in the south of the country is “highly likely” to have come from the stricken Iranian tanker, the Sanchi. Samples of clumpy oil that washed up earlier this month on the shores of the Okinoerabu and […]

The Seychelles has created two vast new marine protected areas in the Indian Ocean after a groundbreaking finance deal brokered by the Nature Conservancy and other stakeholders, including environmentalist and Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio. In exchange for writing off a portion of its debt, the island nation agreed to protect a total of 81,000-square-miles of […]

By Paul Brown A ubiquitous tide of plastic particles has now swept throughout the world’s oceans. The human rights activist Bianca Jagger described to a conference in London Tuesday how a substance that was invented only in 1907 and seemed to have almost magical properties, because it was practically indestructible, is now threatening an environmental […]

By Zachary Toliver Sometimes humans forget that animals have feelings, too, and cause them to suffer. Just consider some Florida beachgoers who were filmed taking photos of and selfies with an injured hammerhead shark, who an expert says most likely died after the incident. On a beach near West Palm Beach, Florida, a group of […]

Microplastics can really be found everywhere, even in the stomachs of creatures living deep underwater. Marine scientists from the National University of Ireland (NUI) in Galway found the plastic bits in 73 percent of 233 deep-sea fish collected from the Northwest Atlantic Ocean—one of the highest microplastic frequencies in fish ever recorded worldwide. For the […]

Taiwan’s Environmental Protection Agency, in cooperation with a number of environmental organizations, proposed an ambitious 12-year timeline Tuesday to eliminate four types of single-use plastics—takeaway beverage cups, drinking straws, shopping bags and disposable tableware—by 2030 to tackle plastic pollution. Taiwan, the birthplace of bubble tea, is famous for its unique food and drink culture, but […]

Queen Elizabeth II is banning plastic straws and bottles across the royal estates. The Telegraph reported that the monarch is behind Buckingham Palace’s plans to phase out single-use plastics from public cafes, royal residences and staff dining rooms. Royal caterers will instead use china plates and glasses or recyclable paper cups. Takeaway food from the […]

By Sam Schipani Last year was not a good one for the North Atlantic right whale. Seventeen of them were discovered to have died, about 4 percent of a total population of 455. Numbers have been low for decades—the species was declared endangered in 1973—but if the current trend continues, the North Atlantic right whale, […]