Microplastics coverage to date
As new articles appear in relation to microplastics and the project we will provide the links here for you to browse through:
Dr Roisin Nash and Dr Anne Marie Mahon represented the project in 2019 on the discussion of the ‘General Scheme of the Prohibition of Certain Products Containing Plastic Microbeads Bill 2018‘ at the Joint Committee on Housing, Planning and Local Government debate on the 12/02/2019.
A number of newspaper articles covered the most recent presentation of microplastic evidence by project partners to the committee mentioned above including: ‘Growing evidence of microplastics in food chain, committee hears‘ (Green News.ie 12/02/19); ‘Microplastics in sewage sludge spread on land to come under microscope‘ (Independent.ie 15/02/2019); ‘Microbeads pervasive in Irish freshwater and marine areas, new research confirms‘ (The Irish Times.ie 12/02/2019); ‘Cosmetics industry on track to phase out microbeads, committee hears‘ (RTE.ie 13/02/2019); and ‘Cosmetics sector claims microbead ban ‘too broad‘ (Independent.ie 13/02/2019).
The Irish Times (July, 2018) references our project having talked to Dr John O’Sullivan (UCD) and Dr Anne Marie Mahon (GMIT) while writing about the Link discovered between microplastics in rivers and wastewater treatment plants and whether nanoplastics are bad for human health?
An article on how the ‘Cabinet backs the drafting of new Bill to ban microbeads in Ireland‘ (Green News.ie 11/0/2018) quotes from project members who were speaking before a Dail Committee earlier this year.
An article from CNN on Earth Day (22/04/2018) “It’s not just the oceans: Microplastic pollution is all around us” quotes Dr Anne Marie Mahon (GMIT).
The Guardian (12/03/18) looks at the high levels of microplastic pollution in rivers and asks the opinion of our own Dr Anne Marie Mahon (GMIT) “Microplastic pollution in oceans is far worse than feared, say scientists “
Microplastic research and in particular this EPA funded research has appeared in a number of episodes of Eco Eye such as ‘Ending Waste’ in the recent 2017 Series. In addition, following the release of the Final Report on the desk study on microplastic pollution there were several newspaper articles which picked up on the topic including the Guardian (Sept 2017) Plastic fibres found in tap water around the world, study reveals, the Independent (Sept 2017) Our drinking water is widely contaminated with tiny bits of plastic.
Some earlier articles from June 2017 on freshwater microplastics included:
Microbeads: The facts, the fears and the fight have them banned
Public health could be ‘at risk’ from exposure to microplastics in drinking water
Public at Risk from Microbeads, Warns EPA
The growth of polluting microplastics in the Irish environment has been confirmed by the Environmental Protection Agency which has warned of the risk to public health.
The agency has for the first time published evidence of the sources and scale of “microbeads” and their threat in Irish freshwaters.
Microbeads are tiny round plastic beads used in exfoliants, cleansers, toothpastes and cosmetic products.
The EPA yesterday published the findings of researchers at the Marine and Freshwater Research Centre at Galway Mayo Institute of Technology (GMIT). It confirms how microbeads are spreading into rivers and lakes and threatening species living in these ecosystems. The evidence is likely to accelerate Government plans to introduce a ban on the use of microbeads in cosmetic and cleaning products. …
Microplastics in Freshwater Systems 