Discovery by UK scientists
prompts fear that melting ice will allow more plastic to be released into the
central Arctic Ocean – with huge effects on wildlife
Sunday 24 September
2017 00.01 BST
A British-led expedition has
discovered sizeable chunks of polystyrene lying on remote frozen ice floes in
the middle of the Arctic Ocean.
The depressing find, only 1,000
miles from the north pole, is the first made in an area that was previously
inaccessible to scientists because of sea ice. It is one of the most northerly
sightings of such detritus in the world’s oceans, which are increasingly
polluted by plastics.
A team of scientists drawn from
the UK, US, Norway and Hong Kong, headed by marine biologist Tim Gordon of
Exeter University, said the discovery confirmed just how far plastic pollution
has spread. It has prompted fears that plastic waste is flowing into the Arctic
as the ice melts because of climate change. The thaw is simultaneously
releasing plastic that has long been trapped in the ice.
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