The National Academies Committee on United States Contributions to Global Ocean Plastic Waste, on Wednesday, December 1, 2021, will virtually release their report entitled “Reckoning with the U.S. Role in Global Ocean Plastic Waste” https://www.nationalacademies.org/event/12-01-2021/united-states-contributions-to-global-ocean-plastic-waste-report-release – The report “… evaluates the prevalence of marine debris and mismanaged plastic waste, examines the import and export of plastic […]
News and Updates
Nanoplastics – Ability to Penetrate Mammalian Immune System Barriers Reported
The abstract of a February 15, 2022 Journal of Hazardous Materials paper by researchers with the Chinese Academy of Sciences https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127508 reports that “… Nanoplastics can be ingested by organisms and penetrate biological barriers to affect multiple physiological functions. However, few studies have focused on the effects of nanoplastics on the mammalian immune system. We […]
Recycling – TerraCycle Take-Back Recycling Claims Suit Settled
This is an update to the pfpw.news July 30, 2021 Post, titled: “Terrcycle Take-Back Recycling Claims Challenged” at https://pfpw.news/2021/07/30/terrcycle-take-back-recycling-claims-challenged/ A November 15, 2021 The Last Beach Cleanup announcement https://954600ca-51b2-4722-b7e8-6df0cf8e257c.filesusr.com/ugd/dba7d7_fbfc397f3901412caed006086b7f9b45.pdf reports that “… On November 5, 2021, a settlement was reached between The Last Beach Cleanup (LBC-plaintiff) and TerraCycle and eight consumer product companies (Coca-Cola, Procter & […]
Nanoplastics – Implications of Crop Abiotic Stress on Human Food Chain Reported
The abstract of an August 26, 2021 Environmental Science: Nano paper https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2021/EN/D1EN00230A by researchers with Korea Pohang University of Science and Technology, Korea Institute of Toxicology, Korea National Institute of Environmental Research and Korea Institute of Science and Technology reports that “… micro- and nanoplastics … can end up in soil, being considered as a […]
Microplastics – Transition from Ocean Water into the Atmosphere Explained
The abstract of a November 12, 2021 Microplastics and Nanoplastics paper https://microplastics.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s43591-021-00018-8 by researchers with Germany University of Bayreuth and Technische Universität Berlin reports that “… Raindrops impacting water surfaces such as lakes or oceans produce myriads of tiny droplets which are ejected into the atmosphere at very high speeds. Here we combine computer simulations […]
Plastic Waste – Global Agreement to “Combat Ocean Plastic Pollution” to be Supported by the United States
A Nov. 18, 2021 US State Department news release https://www.state.gov/secretary-antony-j-blinken-at-an-ocean-plastics-event/ reports that Secretary of State Anthony Blinken during a UN Environment Program Ocean Plastics Event in Nairobi, Kenya advised that the US is “… stepping up our efforts to tackle another pollutant that threatens our planet, plastic, by announcing the United States support for multilateral […]
Recycling – US National Strategy Released by EPA
On November 15, 2021, EPA released https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-releases-bold-national-strategy-transform-recycling-america the “2021 National Recycling Strategy” to “… address the climate impacts of producing, using, and disposing of materials and focus on the human health and environmental impacts of waste and waste-related facilities … [Includes] five strategic objectives… Improve markets for recycled commodities … Increase collection of recyclable materials and […]
Microplastics in Food and Water – National Academies Food Forum December 8 Webinar to address the State of the Science, Human Health Impacts, Consumer Risk Perceptions and Research Gaps
The National Academies Food Forum https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/food-forum/about has scheduled a webinar for December 8, 2021 https://www.nationalacademies.org/event/12-08-2021/microplastics-from-food-and-water-state-of-the-science-and-potential-impacts-on-human-health “… to review the state of the science and research gaps related to plastics and microplastics in food and water. Invited speakers will discuss the state of the science, discuss human health impacts, policy and regulatory implications, and consumer risk […]
Microplastics (MPs) – Bacterial Growth Associated with Antibiotic Resistance Genes (ARG) in Indoor Air Explored
The abstract of a November 1, 2021, ACS Environmental Science and Technology paper https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.1c04520 by researchers with China Nankai University reports that “… Although microplastics (MPs) are distributed in indoor environments in high abundance, information on the effect of MPs on a microbial community in an indoor environment is lacking. Here, we detected polymers (containing […]
Recycling – Consumer Brands Association Calls for Standardized Definitions
A November 11, 2021, Consumer Brands Association news release https://consumerbrandsassociation.org/press-releases/new-report-uniformity-critical-first-step-to-fixing-recycling/ announced the release of “… a new report, “Set up for Failure: How the Fragmented Approach to Recycling Fails Consumers and the Environment,” making clear that standardized definitions for recycling are the gateway to fixing America’s broken system. In the report, Consumer Brands renews its call for federal definitions […]