Welcome to Higginson Strategy’s weekly round-up of international news relating to plastic pollution.
This week, Nestlé faces legal action in France over alleged large-scale plastic pollution, with its subsidiary accused of illegally dumping vast quantities of water bottles and causing severe environmental and human health impacts. Rising oil and energy prices, driven by geopolitical disruptions, are increasing the cost of virgin plastics and pushing industry toward recycled alternatives. New research from the University of Barcelona finds that microplastics are impairing vital physiological functions in Mediterranean corals raising concerns about long-term ecosystem resilience. A major UK report by Surfers Against Sewage identifies the country’s leading plastic polluters. Meanwhile, a Virginia high school student has developed a filtration system capable of removing over 95 percent of microplastics from drinking water.
Nestlé goes on trial over ‘immeasurable’ plastic pollution of water bottle dumps
Nestlé Waters Supply Est, a subsidiary of the Swiss group, is accused of illegally dumping, for over a decade, hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of plastic water bottles. This has reportedly led to widespread soil and water contamination, resulting in “substantial environmental degradation” and “serious harm to human health.”
According to measurements conducted by the French Office for Biodiversity (OFB), pollution levels reached “up to 1.3 million times higher than those found in the Seine River (…)—the equivalent of a spoonful of microplastics per litre of water.”
Read more here.
Rising oil and plastic prices push packagers toward recycled materials
The Iran war and wider regional supply disruptions have driven up oil and energy prices, significantly increasing the cost of virgin polyolefins. The surge in these input costs is now narrowing the price gap between virgin and recycled plastics.
As a result, industry interest in recycled packaging materials is rising – driven not only by sustainability goals, but also by risk management concerns and ongoing market volatility.
Read more here.
Microplastics are compromising the Mediterranean’s critical corals
A first-of-its-kind study, led by researchers at the University of Barcelona, finds that prolonged exposure to microplastics significantly reduces respiration rates in Mediterranean gorgonians – raising concerns about the long-term resilience of the seabed ecosystems they support.
The findings are both significant and unsettling: microplastics are disrupting key physiological processes in these organisms, doing so in ways that leave no visible trace.
Read more here.
New report reveals the UK’s ‘biggest plastic polluters
Surfers Against Sewage (SAS) has released its latest report into the brands most responsible for plastic pollution in the UK. Based on what SAS calls its ‘largest ever citizen science dataset’, the 12 most polluting brands were found to be Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Cadbury, Red Bull, Walkers, Monster, Lucozade, Pepsi, Stella Artois, Haribo, Tesco, and Mars.
The report found that the 12 brands accounted for 17,331 pieces of pollution collectively. Plastic was the most prevalent pollution type recorded, found in more than 85% of analysed cleans, and 60% of all plastic items recorded were single-use.
High School Student Invented a Filter That Eliminates 96 Percent of Microplastics From Water
Virginia teenager Mia Heller’s filtration system harnesses the power of ferrofluid, a magnetic oil that binds to microplastics in flowing water. According to Heller’s tests, her prototype successfully removed 95.52 percent of microplastics from the water and recycled 87.15 percent of the ferrofluid.
“The result is an affordable, low-waste filtration system without the use of a solid membrane,” says Heller.
Read more here.