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the plastic problem

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Atlantic Ocean protected from garbage by Ocean Cleanup barriers in Guatemala

Nation Aug 09

New study highlights ‘grave, growing’ danger of plastic pollution to world’s health

By John Yang, Lorna Baldwin, Kaisha Young

Science Jul 20

plasticproblem
Watch 4:27
Malaysia stops accepting plastic waste from the U.S. and other rich nations

The U.S. produces more plastic waste than any other country in the world. Last year, more than 35,000 tons of it was shipped to Malaysia, which received more discarded plastic from rich nations than any other developing country. But in…

By John Yang, Andrew Corkery

Science Mar 16

Big Oil's new plastic recycling solution littered with failures
Watch 6:32
The plastic industry knowingly pushed recycling myth for decades, new report finds

The world produces an average of 430 million metric tons of plastic each year. The United States alone produces tens of millions of tons of plastic waste annually. Yet on average, only about 5 to 6 percent of plastic in…

By Ali Rogin, Andrew Corkery

Science Jan 13

Plastic
Watch 6:24
Why you may be eating and drinking more microplastics than you thought

From takeout containers to water bottles, plastic seems unavoidable in our daily lives. Now, two new studies have found that we’re eating and drinking more plastic than we might have realized. George Leonard, a co-author of one of the studies…

By John Yang, Lorna Baldwin, Andrew Corkery, Andrew Chambers

Science May 27

The largest plastic pyramid in the world, Plastic Pyramid for The VeryNile NGO, in Giza
Watch 7:27
The UN wants to drastically reduce plastic pollution by 2040. Here’s how

As plastic waste piles up in the world’s landfills, sewer systems and oceans, the United Nations has set a goal to reduce plastic pollution by 80 percent by the year 2040. Inger Andersen, head of the United Nations Environment Programme,…

By William Brangham, Lorna Baldwin, Harry Zahn

Dec 04

Watch 5:44
How countries are trying to tackle the plastic pollution problem together

This week, representatives from 150 nations are meeting in Uruguay with the goal of dramatically reducing or eliminating all plastic pollution by 2040. Meanwhile, U.S. lawmakers introduced a new bill to help curtail the harmful impacts of plastic waste. Washington…

Continue watching

Aug 04

Watch 8:00
‘TeamSeas’ uses YouTube to tackle the global plastic problem

By Paul Solman

Social media can certainly motivate people for good and otherwise. Calls to action to clean up the oceans, rivers, and beaches have galvanized volunteers and gone viral. But given the magnitude of the problem, how should we assess the impact?…

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Nov 26

Watch 4:42
How innovation and small steps can help us solve The Plastic Problem

On Wednesday night, PBS will air a one-hour special report, “The Plastic Problem,” that examines how our global dependence on plastic has created one of the biggest environmental threats to our planet. Amna Nawaz hosts the program, and she joins…

Continue watching

Nov 26

Most Americans would pay more to avoid using plastic, poll says

By Laura Santhanam

These PBS NewsHour and Marist Poll results come as environmental experts project disastrous levels of plastic that are already permeating the water you drink, the food you eat and the air you breathe.

Continue reading

Nov 19

Indian Parliament debates remedies for air pollution in New Delhi

By Associated Press

Air pollution in northern India peaks in the winter due to smoke from agricultural fires. The smoke mixes with vehicle emissions and construction dust.

Continue reading

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Full Episode
Tuesday, Sep 9
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