There remains a lot we don’t know about the whereabouts of the all the plastic waste that washes into the ocean each year, but scientists are continuing to discover bits and pieces in increasingly concerning places.
The latest study in this area has uncovered evidence of plastic waste in the stomachs of sea turtles hailing from all corners of the globe, shedding new light on the far-reaching implications of our plastic pollution problem.
Though there are advanced distribution maps and other tracking tools in development, we currently have no way of knowing where most of it ends up.
But there are some undesirable places we know microplastics do exist, and the list keeps on growing.
This year alone scientists have found various microplastics in human stools all over the world and packed into Arctic sea ice in huge abundance.
The concern is that we don’t really know what effect the ingestion of plastics can have on living creatures, because our understanding of the reactions between its chemicals and those organisms is very limited.
To that end, the World Health Organization launched a health review earlier this year to try and fill the gaps.
Which brings us to the turtles.
Researchers from the University of Exeter and Plymouth Marine Laboratory carried out autopsies on 102 turtles from the Pacific, Mediterranean and the Atlantic oceans, covering all seven species.
They found microplastics in every single one, with the most common type being the fibers uses in clothes, cigarette filters and fishing nets.

“When it gets into the environment, it doesn’t break down.” The airport investigation began last spring and in July there were elevated levels found in samples taken on airport property.
Brock Callen, a resident of West Tisbury, criticized airport officials for being slow to report those July results publicly.
Long after the crowd left, commissioners mostly applauded the response to this environmental crisis by airport management, but commissioner Richard Knabel said the airport needs to answer that question for the public.
Two weeks ago, airport officials announced three positive results for PFAS in private wells in a neighborhood south of the airport that launched a more aggressive investigation of sampling.
A total of 18 samples have been tested with seven of them above 70 ppt, Ron Myrick, an environmental engineer with Tetra said.
Earlier this week, results from eight additional private wells were released, which showed only one above that guideline.
That sample, taken near Edgartown-West Tisbury Road, was 245 ppt.
Myrick repeated what he said when the contamination became public, that it will take time and more data to determine the best long-term solutions.
The testing has centered on the neighborhood directly south of the airport in West Tisbury, off Edgartown–West Tisbury Road.
Later in the meeting, the airport commission authorized a new contract for Tetra Tech for $105,000.

The bottled water industry is seeing a downturn, reports The Wall Street Journal.
As consumers become more mindful about use of single-use plastic items like straws and utensils, single-serving water bottles have also dropped in popularity: “A consumer backlash against disposable plastic plus new government mandates and bans in places such as zoos and department stores have the world’s biggest bottled-water makers scrambling to find alternatives.” Earlier this year, Evian pledged to switch to an all-recycled bottle by 2025, up from its current status of 30 percent.
But that capability, WSJ notes, is not really there yet: “There’s a big problem.
The industry has tried and failed for years to make a better bottle.” Recycled supplies of clean, clear plastic remain scarce.
The industry previously saw amazing growth of 284 percent between 1984 and 2017, as bottled water surged in popularity.
Single-serving bottles still make up two-thirds of U.S. sales.
But images of overflowing landfills and ocean pollution have lessened consumers’ appetite for the convenience of those bottles, leading many to finally invest in a reusable daily water bottle: “Nestlé SA, the world’s biggest bottled-water maker, in October said its bottled-water volumes for the first nine months of the year declined 0.2 percent.” Many places—like some offices, zoos, and parks—have stopped selling bottled water altogether.
Some companies are turning to boxed water, or glass, in an attempt to get over the plastic hump.
Others are still desperately trying to make an environmentally viable, fully recyclable plastic bottle, or at least a plastic bottle that uses a larger portion of recycled material.
Interested water drinkers can learn more about this process over at the WSJ today.

Charlestown residents have had to do it for years.
Six years later, the water is still brown.
Records show the city flushes the systems at least eight or nine times a year to try to clear the lines.
With the help of residents, WDRB News had the water tested.
But after an 18-hour test and despite the color, the lab said this water is free from E-coli and safe to drink.
For the next sample, we went back to the lab, this time to test for lead, copper and other metals.
The city’s levels tested much lower than ours, but .2 is still four times the EPA limit.
But Hall said even if the sale goes through, it’ll be years until it’s all fixed.
Hall said Indiana American Water is expected to fix the water by replacing pipes in five years.
Hall said when the water is brown, he wouldn’t recommend drinking it.

RIGBY — One local family has lived without water for five weeks, and now their community is getting behind them.
On Nov. 19, the Belnap family’s septic system broke and backed up into the house.
Their home insurance won’t pay to replace it, and they can’t get a loan.
“A friend of ours stopped by on Sunday and said, ‘What the heck, what is going on?
‘” Hailey Belnap said.
For five weeks the Belnaps have showered and done laundry at family and friends’ houses.
“All my kids want for Christmas is water,” Hailey said.
“We’re very quiet.
Nobody knew we were doing this.” That is, until friend Barry Woodhouse decided to find out what was going on.
“They really wouldn’t ask for help.

New improvements debut at RSW including lactation rooms and more cell phone charging areas Andrew West, News-Press More mobile device plug-ins and a lactation room for nursing mothers and babies.
Those are some of the upgrades that Southwest Florida International Airport will have ready at its passenger terminal in time for the busy winter travel season.
The inspiration for such improvements came from travelers’ feedback and recommendations from Lee County Port Authority staff.
The Port Authority thinks the changes will make travel more pleasant for now.
It matters that an airport terminal makes a good impression on visitors.
Fill up your water bottle Who hasn’t had to pitch a bottle of water or soda before entering a Transportation Security Administration checkpoint?
Although many airports already have them, these rooms will become a requirement for medium- and large-hub airports as of Sept. 30, 2022.
The law says a lactation room must be in the area past security checkpoints, which means RSW will have at least one such room post-security, after its terminal expansion.
But there’s a “high correlation between satisfaction and the amount people spend at an airport,” said Michael Taylor, travel practice lead at J.D.
Power ranked Southwest Florida International third – behind Buffalo Niagara International and Indianapolis International – for medium-size U.S. airports.

Public Health Sudbury & Districts has issued a drinking water advisory effective immediately for the residents of Foleyet, said a news release issued Sunday.
A drinking water advisory means that people who take their water from the municipal system should not use it for drinking; making juice, infant formula, or ice; cooking; washing uncooked fruits and vegetables; or brushing teeth.
Boiling the water may not make it safe for drinking.
Bottled water used for making infant formula must still be boiled.
The water can be used for laundry and bathing (excluding small children who could swallow the water).
Although the Town of Foleyet has re-established the water supply, which was interrupted due to loss of pressure as a result of a power outage, residents should not use the water for human consumption until advised otherwise by the public health unit.
“Until bacteriological testing of the drinking water indicates a safe supply, the drinking water advisory will remain in effect as a precaution.” Public Health staff will continue to monitor the situation.
Public Health will notify the municipality when the drinking water advisory is lifted and residents will be advised, said the release.
For more information, call Public Health Sudbury & Districts at 705-522-9200, ext.
398 (toll-free 1-866-522-9200) or visit www.phsd.ca.

Never knowing whether they’ll have running water the next day, families like the Taylors cope by collecting rainwater and relying on the generosity of friends and family to do things most people take for granted: letting the kids take a shower before school; washing the pots and pans after dinner; and scrubbing the floors after the children go outside to play.
They’re one of many families affected by crumbling water infrastructure across Central Appalachia, where long outages often leave customers without running water for days or weeks at a time.
He thinks somebody, or some government agency, should help families like his, who live every day not knowing whether they’ll have water for bathing and cooking, much less drinking.
Nobody should, not just ours, but no kid and no person.” The Taylors live in a small community called Huntleyville in Martin County, between the town of Warfield and the Pike County line.
“Every Martin County resident, you will see that,” Jessica Taylor said.
Their water provider, the Martin County Water District, has been the subject of heavy scrutiny from state regulators for years because of its leaky water lines, which lose nearly three out of every four gallons of water the district treats before it can reach customers; poor water quality and reliability; and shoddy financial management.
In November, the Kentucky Public Service Commission, which regulates most Kentucky utilities, issued an order approving a permanent rate increase that makes the average bill 25.7 percent higher than it was in March.
Between January 2017 and Oct. 22 of this year, the Martin County Water District issued 32 boil water advisories caused by line breaks, according to data from the Division of Water.
Because the Taylors live on a hill, they said it can take days for enough pressure to build up in repaired lines before water reaches their house.
Tim Taylor said he thinks the water district or some other agency should deliver water to residents during these long outages.

Sludge runs out of Napier taps over the weekend 10 Dec, 2018 10:41am 2 minutes to read Coffee.
Tea.
Ink.
That is how Napier residents are describing the water which came out of their taps at the weekend.
One resident Chris Baylis , said the water was bad enough she would not let her granddaughter bath in it.
"I haven’t seen any public statement from them acknowledging there is a problem and what they are doing about it."
"It would be great if you can direct this water into gardens, so it won’t go to waste."
"If the problem persists, call our service centre on 06 835 7579.
However, residents did not believe water mains cleaning was causing the problem.
However, council denied that cruise ships were the cause of the problem.

BAHAWALPUR – The number of patients, suffering from kidney diseases, is increasing in Bahawalpur district.
According to the report issued by the Kidney Centre of Bahawal Victoria Hospital, more than 100,000 kidney patients have been admitted to the hospital in first ten months of the current year.
While in 2017, a total of 97,000 patients were admitted to the Kidney Centre which is an alarming situation.
The reason behind increase in the number of kidney patients is the unavailability of clean drinking water in the district.
The number of patients, dying due to kidney diseases, is also increasing due to costly procedure of kidney transplant.
Head of Urology Department Dr Shafqat Ali Tabbasum told The Nation that patients from different districts of South Punjab, Sindh and Balochistan came to the Kidney Centre.
"In Bahawalpur and its adjoining areas, underground water level has dropped to more than 100 feet due to which concentration of arsenic in the water has increased.
And if concrete steps are not taken to purify the water, the number of kidney patients may increase further."
It has also been learnt that patients from Bahawalpur admitted to Kidney Centre are on top of the list followed by Multan, from Lodhran (12,720) and Rahim Yar Khan (3,282).
People from all over South Punjab demanded ban on sale of substandard foodstuff, and they also demanded stern action against those involved in counterfeit medicines.