July 21st, 2017 Humans have produced 8.3 billion tonnes of plastic in just shy of seven decades and most of it has been dumped into the environment. That’s according to a new study published in the journal Science Advances and conducted by a team of US scientists from UC Santa Read more…
July 14th, 2017 The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) – responsible for implementing chemical legislation in the EU – has officially recognised the endocrine-disrupting properties of bisphenol A, also known as BPA. The update was made to the ECHA Candidate List of Substances of Very High Concern (SVHC), which contains substances Read more…
July 12th, 2017 Ireland’s environmental watchdog has warned five industrial sites already under its radar for serious breaches of the environmental law to clean up their act or face further sanctions. The five sites are Arrow Group Limited, Co Kildare; Rosderra Irish Meats Group, Co Offaly; T & J Standish Read more…
July 10th, 2017 A grouping of climate change experts has published six goals that must be achieved by 2020 in order to meet the targets set out in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement. In a letter published in the journal Nature, the authors and co-signatories – represented by eminent scientists, Read more…
July 6th, 2017 Volvo will only produce fully electric or hybrid cars from 2019, making it the first mainstream car manufacturer to commit to a total phase out of cars solely powered by internal combustion engines. This may well be a landmark moment and one of the clearest a signs Read more…
July 28th, 2017 A new research project investigating the links between flooding events and the incidence of waterborne infectious disease outbreaks in Ireland was officially launched at UCD Earth Institute today. The multidisciplinary project will involve social scientists, environmental scientists, engineers and public health researchers from UCD, University of Limerick, DIT and Read more…
June 27th, 2017 Marine scientists aboard Greenpeace’s vessel the Beluga II have documented extensive plastic pollution in some of the most remote parts of the UK. The Beluga II is due to dock in Edinburgh today after a 2-month survey and in-depth analysis will follow in the coming months. Initial Read more…
A new report published by the European Parliament’s committee responsible for scrutinising the European Commission’s agricultural policies has highlighted the threats facing soils across Europe. The report – prepared by academic experts from Wageningen University, Aarhus University and the University of Cordoba – was presented to the European Parliament on Read more…
June 15th, 2017 The Green Party today launched a Waste Reduction Bill to introduce a deposit refund scheme for glass and plastic bottles and a complete ban on single-use non-recyclable plastics, such as coffee cups and plastic cutlery. Only 40 per cent of the 210,000 tonnes of plastic produced each year Read more…
June 15th, 2017 European retailers face severe financial repercussions if they do not transition to hydrofluorocarbon (HFC)-free cooling technology, the Environmental Investigation Agency warned today. The EU F-Gas Regulation, brought into law in 2015, legislates for the rapid, stepped phasing out of the use HFCs, which are potent greenhouse gases. From Read more…
