Plastics

How Scotland’s marine wildlife is in danger from plastic pollution

Posted by Tisha Brown - 4th June 2017
Image for How Scotland’s marine wildlife is in danger from plastic pollution

Scotland is the envy of the world with its rich waters teeming with wildlife and spectacular coastlines and beaches. But it’s increasingly at threat from the scourge of marine plastic pollution. We’re halfway through our scientific voyage around the shores of Scotland to document and investigate the impacts of plastic… Read More

Are basking sharks eating plastic? We went to find out.

Posted by Luke Massey - 31st May 2017
Image for Are basking sharks eating plastic? We went to find out.
Crew on the Beluga II search for basking sharks on the west coast of Scotland
All rights reserved. Credit: Will Rose / Greenpeace

“Basking sharks!” At 5am, these words shatter the silence in the sleeping quarters on the lower deck of the ship. The crew burst into life, wrestling on clothes, cameras, binoculars. Up on the helm, eyes pace back and forth across the expansive blue of Gunna Sound – a known feeding… Read More

Do the manifestos commit to end ocean plastics?

Posted by Louisa Casson - 22nd May 2017
Image for Do the manifestos commit to end ocean plastics?
All rights reserved. Credit: Kajsa Sjolander / Greenpeace

No matter which party possible MPs belong to, or which constituency they are campaigning to represent, they all have a responsibility to help end ocean plastics. A rubbish truck’s worth of plastic is entering the ocean every single minute, with devastating impacts for marine life. 84% of the British… Read More

Onboard the Beluga II

Posted by Marcela Teran - 19th May 2017
Image for Onboard the Beluga II
Marcela onboard the Beluga II
All rights reserved. Credit: Kajsa Sjölander / Greenpeace

Last week I had the privilege to sail along the east coast of Scotland on board Greenpeace’s ship the Beluga II. This is the start of a two-month expedition documenting and investigating the impact of plastic in some of the most stunning and biodiverse areas of the UK. It was… Read More

An uninhabited island deep in the South Pacific falls prey to a plague – of plastic.

Posted by Louisa Casson - 16th May 2017
Image for An uninhabited island deep in the South Pacific falls prey to a plague – of plastic.
One of many hundreds of crabs that now make their homes out of plastic debris washed up on Henderson Island. Photograph: Jennifer Lavers / The Guardian
Attribution-NonCommercial Creative Commons. Credit: Jennifer Lavers / The Guardian

It’s a horror story. A truly shocking 38 million pieces of plastic have been found on Henderson Island, one of the Pitcairn Islands that make up one of the UK’s last remaining overseas territories. This island has no one living on it, yet its beaches are now… Read More

Bon Voyage! The Beluga II Sets Sail!

Posted by Tisha Brown - 12th May 2017
Image for Bon Voyage! The Beluga II Sets Sail!
Crew of the Greenpeace ship the Beluga II in Edinburgh, Scotland. The ship is starting a tour around Scotland to highlight the problems of plastic waste in our oceans.

Ocean plastic crisis Plastic pollution is one of the greatest threats that our oceans face. Up to 12 million tonnes of plastic enter the ocean every year. That is the equivalent of a rubbish truck’s worth a minute. Once the plastic is in the ocean it becomes a danger to… Read More