New research this week is the latest to show that microplastics have polluted just about everywhere on Earth. Scientists discovered plastic particles in cloud samples collected from atop a mountain in Eastern China.
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Nowhere is safe from microplastics. Tiny plastic pieces are in waterways, in our bodies, and now researchers have found microplastics in clouds on top of Mount Fuji and Mount Oyama.
In recent years, drink chains have switched their single-use cups from plastic to paper to avoid plastic pollution and pile-ups in landfills. But according to recent research, the plastic cup that we feel good walking out of a cafe with isn’t great for the environment either.
The world is covered with plastic pollution. That breaks down to become microplastics—tiny bits of plastic smaller than 5 mm.
For the past year on the coast of France, the waves crashing ashore have borne evidence of an unsettling mystery. An untold number of tiny plastic pellets are landing on the beaches of Brittany, Pays de la Loire, and elsewhere.