Month: May 2018

New proposal by the EU Commission will tackle marine litter and “ghost fishing”

The European Commission has tabled an important legal proposal to tackle marine litter. By introducing new measures on single use plastics as well as derelict fishing gear, the proposal will contribute to Europe’s transition towards a Circular Economy. Fishing gear (nets, lines, pots, traps…) accounts for 27% of all beach litter. With its proposal, the…
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CleanAtlantic project: 2nd Coordination Meeting in Madeira

The CleanAtlantic consortium will met in Funchal (Madeira) on the 23rd and 24th of May for its second Coordination Meeting. During this 2-day event, the partnership will review the project progress up to date and the associated working plan, and will agree on tasks, activities, and deadlines for the following activity period. The meeting will be…
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Anchovies Eat Plastic Because It Smells Like Prey

Plastic debris can be harmful to marine fish, and to the people who eat them. But why do fish eat so much plastic? New research suggests that our plastic may smell a lot like their food. Over 50 species of fish have been found to consume plastic trash at sea. This is bad news, not…
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European Commission proposes taxing non-recycled plastic packaging waste after Brexit

The European Commission has announced plans to tax non-recycled plastic packaging waste in the new EU budget, following Britain’s exit next. It has suggested European Union nations contribute new funds to the bloc’s budget to fill the gap left by Britain’s impending exit by taxing digital services, plastic waste and carbon emissions. EU governments may…
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World’s deepest plastic bag found at bottom of Mariana Trench – highlighting spread of ocean pollution[

The world’s deepest plastic bag has been found at bottom of the Mariana Trench by scientists, highlighting the spread of ocean pollution. The find was made 36,000ft (10,898m) undersea in the deepest ocean trench – and was one of 3,000 pieces of man-made debris dating back 30 years. Numerous international teams working around the world…
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El consorcio OCT-TSS y su proyecto OceanCleaner pasa a la fase 2 del programa H2020

El Consorcio OCT-TSS (Ocean Cleaner Technology SL&Tincasur Sur SL) perteneciente al sector naval, estará presente en la feria NAVALIA que se celebra en Vigo del 22-24 de Mayo 2018. OCT-TSS expondrá su proyecto Ocean Cleaner Technology (stand J-34) que logró superar recientemente la Fase 2 del programa Horizonte 2020. Se trata de un buque catamarán…
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Special issue on micro and macro plastics pollution in COESH

Plastic pollution is a globally recognized problem, with an estimated 322 million metric tons produced in 2016, excluding plastic fiber production. When evaluating the risks three main sources of microplastics (MPs) should be considered; polymer nanoparticles manufactured for specific purposes like cosmetic products, fragmentation of plastics caused by different types of degradation, and wastewater treatment…
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The Circular Ocean competition 2018

Experts believe that lost and discarded fishing-related gear is the most treacherous form of marine plastic, persisting in the marine environment for hundreds of years, continuing to catch fish and causing entanglement of marine wildlife, including birds and mammals. This is an important issue in the Northern Periphery and Arctic (NPA) region, where many remote communities…
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Los microplásticos del Ártico provienen de la pesca y del basurero del Pacífico

Un equipo de investigadores del Instituto Alfred Wegener (AWI) del Centro Helmholtz de Investigaciones Polares y Marinas (Alemania) halló altas cantidades de microplásticos en el Ártico. Las muestras que recogieron para analizar en cinco regiones en el Océano Ártico contenían hasta 12.000 partículas microplásticas por litro de hielo marino. Su huella en el hielo ha…
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These European countries produce the most plastic waste per person

David Attenborough’s BBC documentary series Blue Planet II caught the attention of viewers around the world last year with its shocking insight into how plastic waste is harming fish, marine animals and birds. According to a study published last year in the Science Advances journal, we have produced 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic in the past six decades,…
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