Are 'microplastics' marine pollutants?

Experts start to ask if tiny particles might be clogging ocean food chain

By Jessica Marshall
Discovery Channel

We've all heard about sea turtles, dolphins or seabirds dying from entanglement in six-pack rings, plastic bags or other detritus - or from bellies full of mistakenly swallowed plastic. But some marine researchers are concerned about the effect that much smaller bits of plastic may be having on the seas.

So-called "microplastics" may concentrate pollutants, be ingestible by the ocean's tiny denizens - from zooplankton to filter feeders like clams and mussels - and move up the food chain.

A group of scientists gathered this month to identify what's known about this problem and where more research is needed.

"We know that stuff breaks down, and as it breaks down, it forms smaller and smaller pieces of plastic," said workshop organizer Joel Baker of the University of Washington, Tacoma. "But there's another story, and that is that there are some processes that either purposefully or inadvertently create microplastic particles in their own right."

One of the outcomes of the workshop was to identify areas where the greatest effects are likely to be seen.

These are good starting points for additional research, because if microplastics are causing problems, such locations should show the effects most directly, he added. In the meantime, taking steps to reduce plastic debris - large and small - is a good idea, Helton said. "I don't think there's any right amount of plastic to dump in the ocean."

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URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/26994478/

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Bottled water, everywhere

Natural Hydration Council: drink more bottled water ... please?

Posted by Tom Philpott at 3:54 PM on 18 Sep 2008

Bottled water sales growth may be "drying up," but the bottled-water industry is veritably gushing on the PR front.

Here it is investing in a high-dollar sponsorship of the upcoming presidential campaigns, joining Anheuser-Busch, EDS (which specializes in "information technology outsourcing), BBH, a big U.K. advertising firm, and others.

And over here, you've got water giants Nestle Waters, Danone, and Highland Spring rolling out the Natural Hydration Council. Right, because the only way to stay "naturally hydrated" is to package water into tiny plastic bottles and haul it around the globe. The NHC will "research and promote the environmental, health and other sustainable benefits of natural bottled water." (Hat tip to Anna Lappé.)

You know, this reminds me a bit of the Alliance for Abundant Food and Energy -- a confederation of Archer Daniels Midland Co., DuPont Co., John Deere, Monsanto, and the Renewable Fuels Association. They want to make sure we know that if we don't a) grow lots of genetically modified crops, and b) convert a huge portion of them into fuel for our cars, then the human race will have to give up not only eating, but also, gulp, driving.

Maybe the Natural Hydration folks should consider joining forces with the Abundant Food and Energy set. You see, farmers go through lots of water. Why shouldn't they be using bottled? Hey, bottled water industry -- do the words market opportunity mean anything to you?

Maybe in the next farm bill, the two lobbying groups can push through a subsidy for bottled water as irrigation. Natural Irrigation Council, anyone?

<a href="http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2008/9/18/102424/092">Grist.org</a>

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