Waste in news on June 5

Here’s a round-up of today’s news reports and debates on waste

Simply Put: Kerala and plastics

Indian Ocean island group chokes on 238 tonnes of plastic waste

It included about 25% single-use plastics, 373,000 toothbrushes and 977,000 shoes

Can plastic packaging be avoided? This initiative shows the way

Interweaving sustainability, responsibility and social welfare, some enterprises offer and induce customers to choose and become eco-conscious

Food wrappers overtake cigarette butts as beach litter: Report

A record 4,771,602 food wrappers picked up in a single day by 943,195 volunteers of environmental advocacy group Ocean Conservancy across …

Daily Court Digest: Major environment orders (January 10, 2024)

Down To Earth brings you the top environmental cases heard in the Supreme Court, the high courts and the National Green Tribunal  

Plastic-free planet: Third session of Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee begins in Nairobi

Global Coalition for Plastics Sustainability announced; India submits pre-meeting written statement for first time  

Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Nestlé worst plastic polluters in global cleanups, brand audits

Coca-Cola was the top polluter with Coke-branded plastic pollution found in 40 of the 42 countries assessed in a global audit conducted by …

Managing microplastic pollution is important for meeting sustainable development goals in India

Microplastics are a significant environmental problem and pose risks to marine life, terrestrial organisms and human health

Is India‘s draft resolution to tackle plastic pollution practical

India’s framework proposed a voluntary approach rather than a legally-binding one

UNEA-6: Report raises concern on India’s reliance on single-use plastics; cites study to support reuse systems

The Zero Waste Europe-NHF study cited encompassed the perspectives of street vendors, customers and policy makers across Kolkata, Mumbai, Delhi …

Polyester recycling: Sector largely informal; home furnishing makers in Panipat, Delhi found flouting norms

Downcycled products made at Panipat factories cannot be recycled again; are sent to landfills or burned at the end of their life-cycle

Cutting the Gordian knot: Norway’s initiative to combat global plastic jeopardy

The Scandinavian country proposes stronger control of international trade in plastic wastes at the 14th Conference of the Parties to the Basel …

Simply Put: The mountain of trash

Simply Put: The plastic asteroid

Plastic Pollution: Birds on every continent except Antarctica live amid human rubbish

While the blanket term of ‘plastic’ is used to refer to such pollution, many different materials litter the environment, like disposable masks

In Brazil, patients risk everything for the 'right to beauty'

In Brazil, patients are thought of as having the “right to beauty.” In public hospitals, plastic surgeries are free or low-cost

Harsh Vardhan inaugurates plant to convert plastic waste into diesel in Dehradun

The plant can convert one tonne of plastic waste into 800 litres of diesel every day

US study finds hundreds of thousands of nanoplastic particles in bottled drinking water

Each litre contained 110,000 to 370,000 particles, 90% of them smaller than microplastics

UNEA 5.2: Excitement, jubilation as resolution to end plastic pollution by 2024 adopted

The treaty called for “sovereignty of states to work for public good”

Draft global guidelines to reduce plastic fishing gear in oceans agreed upon

A set of draft Voluntary Guidelines on marking fishing gear have been adopted by countries to monitor the use of fishing gear, which is …

Run-up to Ottawa: Arctic a ‘hemispheric sink’ for chemicals & plastics; 13 million people in region at risk, says report

Document calls for Just Transition framework; reconnecting with traditional values of Arctic indigenous peoples  

Consuming consciously is not being miserly

Conscious consumption and 'cheapness' needs to be disassociated

Pollution in news on May 9

Here’s a round-up of today’s news reports and debates on pollution

Squirrels now use plastic to build their nests

In urban areas, trees are scarce but plastic material is not