plastic pollution

Join our newsletter

The best of EcoWatch, right in your inbox. Sign up for our email newsletter!

    EU Moves to Ban 10 Most Harmful Single-Use Plastics

    EU Moves to Ban 10 Most Harmful Single-Use Plastics

    In an ambitious effort to stop ocean pollution, the European Commission on Monday proposed banning the 10 most common single-use plastic products as well as lost and abandoned fishing gear. The European Union’s executive arm targeted the products that are most often found on the continent’s beaches and seas, which together account for 70 percent […]

    UK’s Largest Grocer Takes on Food and Plastic Waste

    UK’s Largest Grocer Takes on Food and Plastic Waste

    It’s been a green week for Tesco, the UK’s largest supermarket. First, the chain said it would remove “Best before” labels from around 70 pre-packaged fruits and vegetables in an attempt to stop customers from discarding still-edible food, BBC News reported Tuesday. Then it announced plans to ban all non-recyclable plastics by 2019, The Independent […]

    40-Ton Sperm Whales Killed by Plastic Bags in Mediterranean

    40-Ton Sperm Whales Killed by Plastic Bags in Mediterranean

    More than a third of the sperm whales found dead in the eastern Mediterranean since 2001 were killed by plastic debris, researchers from the Pelagos Cetacean Research Institute in Athens found. Necropsies on nine of the 24 dead whales found in Greek waters revealed that their stomachs were filled with large amounts of plastic, The […]

    Alaska Airlines Launches #StrawlessSkies Campaign

    Alaska Airlines Launches #StrawlessSkies Campaign

    As part of its worldwide push “For a Strawless Ocean,” Alaska Airlines announced Monday that its 44 million yearly passengers will fly in “strawless skies.” Starting July 16, the leading U.S. airline on the 2017 Dow Jones Sustainability Index will stop distributing single-use plastic stirring straws and citrus picks in its lounges and on its […]

    BPA Could Harm Developing Hearts, Research Suggests

    BPA Could Harm Developing Hearts, Research Suggests

    One of the major health concerns associated with the widespread use of plastics is exposure to bisphenol A (BPA). BPA is an endocrine disruptor, meaning it mimics the effects of estrogen on the body and has been linked to the growth of tumors in the breast, uterus and prostate, impacts on pregnancy and fertility and […]

    San Francisco Lawmakers Propose Bill Banning Plastic Straws

    San Francisco Lawmakers Propose Bill Banning Plastic Straws

    The growing movement to stamp out plastic straws is spreading to San Francisco. Supervisors Katy Tang and Ahsha Safai plan to unveil on Tuesday legislation that prohibits restaurants, bars and coffee shops from serving plastic straws, stirrers or cocktail sticks with beverages, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Instead of the disposable items, the lawmakers suggested […]