plastic

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&#39;Plastic Rocks&#39; Found in Hawaii
 'Plastic Rocks' Found in Hawaii 
Jun 11, 2014 9:38 AM CDT

'Plastic Rocks' Found in Hawaii

'Plastiglomerates' likely form when people melt plastic in fires while camping

(Newser) - Since the mid-1950s, humans have produced more than 6 billion tons of plastic—and at least in Hawaii, geologists are finding that some of it is now fusing to volcanic rocks, seashells, sand, and coral to form an entirely new type of rock. Calling them plastiglomerates, the geologists say they...

Mystery of 'Missing Plastics' Solved in Arctic Ice

Melting will release 1T plastic pieces into oceans: study

(Newser) - So about the hundreds of millions of tons of plastics we've been releasing into the oceans—it went where, exactly? According to a new study , much of it was trapped in Arctic ice and will be released as the ice melts, USA Today reports. At current melting rates, more...

NY Lawmakers Going After ... Facial Scrubs

And other beauty products with microbeads that make it into water supply

(Newser) - New York state lawmakers have set their sights on an unlikely target: facial scrubs. More specifically, the washes, soaps, and toothpastes that contain smaller-than-a-salt-grain plastic beads, which are touted for their exfoliation abilities and derided for what scientists say they're doing to our ecosystem. As the New York Times ...

Even Barnacles Eating Our Plastic Trash

 Even Barnacles Eating 
 Our Plastic Trash 
new study
Oct 24, 2013 1:57 PM CDT

Even Barnacles Eating Our Plastic Trash

33% of barnacles in study had ingested a microplastic

(Newser) - Today's most unfortunate number: 267. That's the number of marine species that have been found to have eaten plastic, and a new study zeroes in on one such species— barnacles. Researchers traveled to the North Pacific Gyre (better known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch ) with a...

New Find on Moon of Saturn: Plastic

Or at least a molecule used to make it

(Newser) - Earth and Saturn now have something in common: plastic. NASA's Cassini spacecraft detected the molecule propylene on Saturn's moon Titan, and propylene is one of the basic ingredients of modern plastic here on Earth, reports the BBC . It's the first extraterrestrial plastic ingredient ever found, reports NASA'...

LA OKs Nation's Biggest Bag Ban

Plastic grocery bags to go next year

(Newser) - Environmental activists have scored a huge victory in Los Angeles, where the city council has voted 11-1 to make the city the biggest in the US to ban plastic grocery bags. Stores that sell perishable foods—including supermarkets, mini-marts, and retailers like Target that have grocery sections—will be barred...

$10M Question: Twist Tie or Plastic Clip?

Businessweek looks at obscure but high-stakes fight

(Newser) - It's the $10 million question you've never cared to ask: What's the best way to secure a bag of bread? In one corner, the humble twist-tie—simple but more labor-intensive. In the other, plastic clips—less work but more room for error. You may not even notice...

Pilot Plans 10K-Mile Flight—Powered By Plastic Trash

He aims to get Cessna from Sydney to London in 6 days

(Newser) - A pioneering British pilot is planning to fly from Sydney, Australia, to London on a plane powered by plastic trash. Jeremy Rowsell hopes to get his single-engine Cessna 172 to London in six days, making 16 stops to collect more fuel made from discarded plastic, the Telegraph reports. The diesel...

Mass. Town: No More Small Water Bottles

Concord officially bans sales

(Newser) - If you're a regular buyer of small water bottles, Concord, Mass., isn't the place for you. At least not since Jan. 1, when the town officially banned sales of water bottles a liter or less in size, the Huffington Post reports. Breaking the law results first in a...

Expedition Charts 'Plasticized' Pacific

'Synthetic soup' extends far into western Pacific

(Newser) - An expedition charting the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch" has been hauling out depressing amounts of plastic from the little-studied waters of the western North Pacific gyre. "We've been finding lots of micro plastics, all the size of a grain of rice or a small marble," the...

Plastic in Pacific Has Grown 100-Fold Since 1970s

Study takes a look at the 'Great Pacific Garbage Patch'

(Newser) - Humanity has tossed a lot of plastic into the Pacific Ocean in the last 40 years. The level of small plastic pieces in the so-called "Great Pacific Garbage Patch" has increased 100-fold over that span, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography found in a new study. "We did not...

Resin-Lined Metal Water Bottles Can Leach BPA, Too

Switching from plastic may not help depending on liner

(Newser) - A new study from toxicologist Scott Belcher of the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine indicates that switching to metal water bottles from polycarbonate-plastic may not eliminate the risk of BPA leaching, reports Science News . It's the resin liner in the metal bottles that can be the culprit. Fortunately,...

How to Dodge BPA in Daily Life

Fresh food diet best way to avoiding risky chemical

(Newser) - The estrogen-mimicking compound BPA, linked to health problems including breast cancer and infertility , is found in plastics, canned food, and even store receipts. It's nearly impossible to avoid it completely, but researchers say eating more fresh food helps and Fast Company has some tips for further cutting down exposure. Try...

Bananas the Key to More Fuel-Efficient Cars?

Their fibers can create a light, strong nanocellulosic plastic

(Newser) - It may sound a little bananas, but it turns out that, well, bananas could help create more fuel-efficient cars. Brazilian scientists have come up with a way of using fibers from that fruit, as well as pineapples and coconuts, to make a lighter, stronger plastic. In fact, it's 30% lighter,...

Why Plastic Isn't Evil

 Why Plastic Isn't Evil 
OPINION
Mar 18, 2011 12:44 PM CDT

Why Plastic Isn't Evil

It's just the way we use plastic that's the problem: Susan Freinkel

(Newser) - Plastic is the material environmentalists love to hate, but it's getting a bad rap, writes author Susan Freinkel in the New York Times . These days, plastic is equated with junk and litter because we waste it on things like shopping bags and drinking straws. "If we understood plastic’s...

Most Plastics Release Hormone-Like Chemicals
BPA-Free Plastics Leach Hormone-Like Chemicals
STUDY SHOCKER
Mar 3, 2011 3:38 AM CST

BPA-Free Plastics Leach Hormone-Like Chemicals

More than 70% of tested plastics released chemicals: study

(Newser) - More bad health news on the plastics front. Even BPA-free plastic products can leach a chemical that acts like the sex hormone estrogen, according to new research. The researchers bought hundreds of plastic products from stores like Wal-Mart and Whole Foods, focusing on products that come in contact with food,...

Going Green? Bah! GOP Brings Back Foam Cups

Republicans reverse Democrats' green initiatives in Congress cafeterias

(Newser) - The Republicans are back in control of the House, and they're bringing something with them: styrofoam cups. The cups, along with plastic forks and a number of other things seen as not eco-friendly, were done away with four years ago by Nancy Pelosi to reduce Congress's carbon footprint. Now, the...

Maine Gov. Paul LePage: Don't Sweat BPA Dangers, 'Worst Case Is Some Women May Have Little Beards'
Maine Gov:
Don't Sweat
BPA Dangers
Feb 24, 2011 9:45 AM CST

Maine Gov: Don't Sweat BPA Dangers

'Worst case is some women may have little beards," says LePage

(Newser) - If you're worried about the dangers of BPA , you shouldn't be, according to Maine’s governor. The worst thing that could result from exposure to the chemical is that some women could grow "little beards," Paul LePage said last week. LePage made the comment to support his argument...

Big Stink: Great Garbage Patch's Size Exaggerated

Think 1% the size of Texas, not twice as big

(Newser) - The "Great Pacific Garbage Patch" is often said to be twice the size of Texas—but that and other scary-sounding claims are “grossly exaggerated,” some scientists are now insisting. A new study shows the plastic waste patch is actually 200 times smaller than previously claimed when comparing...

Mystery Swirls Around Atlantic Garbage Patch

It's just not growing, say scientists

(Newser) - Though you may be more familiar with its more famous cousin, the Texas-size Great Pacific Garbage Patch, there does indeed exist a mass of tiny plastic pieces in the Atlantic. But the North Atlantic Gyre is turning out to be the more mysterious of the two: A two-decades-long study released...

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