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 findings document extensive plastic pollution in remote locations of Scotland, including important feeding grounds for basking sharks, seals and whales and numerous seabird colonies.
[embedded content]
This survey builds on the increasing body of scientific evidence that has highlighted the scale of the plastic pollution problem in the world’s oceans and the threat to marine life and human health.
A recent Coastwatch report showed that 80 per cent of surveyed beaches in Ireland contained plastic litter.
Greenpeace will present a petition to the Scottish government calling for a deposit refund scheme for drinks containers to be introduced.
This follows the recent announcement of a bill by the Green Party that would implement a similar system here in Ireland.
Among the measures, the bill would implement a 10 cent refund to citizens returning plastic, glass or aluminium drinks containers.
Countries that use such as scheme typically see greater than 90 per cent return rates.
