Four of Indonesia’s rivers rank among the 20 most polluted in the world in terms of mismanaged plastic waste measured in metric tons. This makes Indonesia the second-largest contributor to marine plastic pollution after China. A recent research article, published in the journal Nature Communications, estimates that between 1.15 million and 2.41 million tonnes Read more…
Calls for the recycling industry in Hong Kong to upgrade after Beijing set to ban 24 types of imported waste by the end of the year. In a dusty scrapyard encircled by mountains of scrap plastic, 11-year-old Yi-Jie dips her hairbrush in a tank of water clumpy with bits of Read more…
It started when An Dang, a 26-year-old living in Hanoi, watched a plastic straw being pulled out from the bleeding nose of a sea turtle in Costa Rica. The Youtube video was an instant hit and the whole experience gave An a wake-up call. An Dang. “I felt the pain as Read more…
BUSINESS owners in Kuala Lumpur are still using petroleum-based plastic bags and polypropylene containers despite the ban coming into effect on Jan 1. The Federal Territories Ministry made it compulsory for all business owners in Kuala Lumpur, Putrajaya and Labuan to use only biodegradable and compostable plastic bags and food Read more…
Microplastic contamination has been found in tap water in countries around the world, leading to calls from scientists for urgent research on the implications for health. Scores of tap water samples from more than a dozen nations were analysed by scientists for an investigation by Orb Media, who shared the findings Read more…
SINGAPORE: Singapore is famous for her delicious cuisine yet faces a serious food waste problem. The amount of food waste generated has increased by 40 per cent in the past decade. In 2016 alone, the National Environment Agency reported a staggering 791,000 tonnes of food waste. One of the largest Read more…
China has confirmed it is to stop taking many types of recycling material by the end of the year, posing a major difficulty for Ireland and other EU countries. The Chinese government recently notified the World Trade Organisation it intends to ban the import of “all scrap plastics and unsorted paper” by Read more…
MOSCOW (Sputnik) – South Korea, China and Japan agreed on Friday to disclose the results of the joint research into cross-border air pollution, making significant progress in tackling the environmental problem, South Korean Environment Minister Kim Eun-kyung said. “We agreed to fully disclose the outcome of the joint research on particle matters among Korea, Japan and China in the future, an issue on which Read more…
PORTLAND, OREGON—More trees mean cleaner air, right? Not necessarily, suggests a new study looking at the wooded areas next to roadways. Instead, lines of trees known as “greenbelts” might actually trap a common pollutant from vehicle exhaust—nitrogen dioxide (NO2)—boosting on-the-ground levels of the gas up to 21%. That could make breathing Read more…
Do not eat! These popsicles are made of polluted water – including some vaguely identified chunks. There were created by three design students as part of their graduation project in Taiwan, to highlight the high level of pollution in their local water systems. Read More