Plastic pollution: Chinese scientists identify polythene-eating bacteria

Good News Notes: “Chinese scientists say they have identified a blend of marine bacteria that appears capable of breaking down polythene, one of the most ubiquitous plastics on the planet and source of much of the pollution  in the world’s oceans. While the plastic-eating qualities of bacteria are already well known to the scientific community,…

Making Conventional Plastics Biodegradable

Good News Notes: “With decades of experience in the polymers industry, the Radical Plastics founders have targeted the agricultural market as the initial testing ground for the commercial viability of their product. The company has been working with a third party to validate that their resin can meet the standard for degradation of a soil…

Compostic launches home-compostable plastic products in US

Good News Notes: “New Zealand-based zero-waste packaging manufacturer Compostic has introduced its product line in the US. The company, which manufactures fully home-compostable cling wrap and resealable bags as an alternative to kitchen plastics, will sell its products via its website and Amazon. The vegan-friendly products and packaging can break down in home compost after…

Sir David Attenborough Backs New Tech That Can Recycle All Plastics

Good News Notes: “Wildlife filmmaker Sir David Attenborough has appeared in a video campaign for a new plastic recycling technology in the U.K., alongside other naturalists calling for stronger protections for the world’s oceans. The campaign heralds the start of construction in the U.K. of a groundbreaking recycling facility which the firm behind the technology…

Plastic trash can now be recycled into ultra-strong graphene

Good News Notes: “Packaging from the grocery store, lint from our clothing, plastic shopping bags – plastics and microplastics are everywhere, and they’re not going anywhere. In fact, it will take them hundreds of years to decompose in landfills . In order to speed up this decomposition process, scientists from Rice University are transforming these discarded…

NBC, Oceana Debut PSA Featuring Ted Danson Calling To Stop Plastic Pollution

Good News Notes: “Danson stars as the fictional mayor of Los Angeles in the new NBC original comedy “Mr. Mayor” which airs Thursday nights on NBC.‘The plastics being dumped into our oceans are harming sea turtles, whales, birds, and other marine life. I think we can all agree that saving these amazing animals is worth ditching plastics,’ Danson…

Wood, metal, paper & fabric can help cut climate-harming plastic

Good News Notes: “Replacing plastics used in buildings with metal, wood, ceramics and glass, turning to paper and fabric for packaging, and boosting recycling rates could slash planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, researchers said on Monday. A mixture of substitution, changes in business models and consumer behaviour, and producing more plastics without using fossil…

22-year-old runs from ocean to ocean for Clean Seas

Good News Notes: “On 26 July 2019, 22-year-old Sam Bencheghib asked the crowd of friends, supporters and media gathered around him, to take two deep breaths as a reminder of the importance that the oceans have in giving life. Bencheghib was about to embark upon a 3,100-mile run across the United States of America from coast…

Products made from hemp-based plastics enter consumer market

Good News Notes: “From toothbrushes at luxury island resorts to 3D printing filament, products made from hemp-based plastics are popping up in consumer products since the crop was made legal in the United States in 2018 for the first time in 80 years. They are the latest generation of bioplastics, which are plastic materials produced…