Environment
Need some good news about the environment? The Optimist Daily is your go-to herald of positive environmental news, highlighting eco-friendly solutions and scientific progress around climate action, circularity, conservation, and more. Learn about everything eco in our Environment section.
These bold ideas aim to make plastic waste a thing of the past
When the Ellen MacArthur Foundation launched its New Plastics Economy initiative two years ago, it made a dark, headline-grabbing prediction. It said if nothing is done to arrest the rate at which plastic is entering the oceans, those oceans will contain more plastic than fish by 2050. But the Read More...
This giant tower is the world’s biggest air purifier
China’s latest attempt to mitigate some of its air pollution is an experimental air purification tower standing 100 meters high in the city of Xian. In preliminary tests, researchers found that the giant tower can improve air quality over an area some 10 square kilometres in size. The smog tower Read More...
These unmanned electric vessels will set sail in Europe this summer
Dutch manufacturers have created what’s being called the “Tesla of the canals,” a fully electric, emission-free container barge that will operate from the ports of Antwerp, Amsterdam, and Rotterdam starting this summer. The barges are designed to operate without a crew, although the vessels Read More...
Plastic waste: network of water refill points aims to tackle problem
Consumers will be encouraged to refill their water bottles free of charge in tens of thousands of shops, cafes, businesses and water fountains in England under plans announced by the water industry. The national scheme aims to fight the growing scourge of waste created by single-use plastic by Read More...
This new fuel cell could revolutionize carbon capture technology
While hydrogen fuel cells have made news lately for their promise to produce clean, efficient energy, there’s a new a fuel cell that’s promising to make headlines. Researchers have created something called the direct carbon fuel cell that generates clean energy using solid carbon sources like Read More...
China's waste import ban has upended the global recycling industry
For years China was the world's top destination for recyclable trash, but a ban on certain imports has left nations scrambling to find new dumping grounds for growing piles of garbage. The decision was announced in July and came into force on January 1, giving companies from Europe to the United Read More...
This supermarket chain is going ‘plastic-free’ on all its own brand products
What we really need to tackle our plastic problem is for companies and governments to stop using plastics altogether when it isn’t necessary. The supermarket chain Iceland is showing that it’s possible to phase out the use of plastics completely after committing to eliminating plastic packaging Read More...
The EU is aiming to make all plastic packaging recyclable by 2030
Europeans produce 25 million tons of plastic waste annually and recycle less than 30 percent of it. This is a wildly unsustainable habit, one that will be targeted under a new policy declared by European Union regulators this week. Under the new policy, all plastic packaging on the EU market must Read More...
We could soon be using carbon emissions to produce plastic
Turning our waste into solutions is vital if we want to keep the planet healthy. A wonderful example of this comes from a group of researchers that have pinpointed the conditions needed to convert CO2 to ethylene, which is used to make most common plastics today. The positive effects of this could Read More...
James Dyson wants to use his vacuum technology to suck garbage from rivers
Dyson vacuum cleaners have been cleaning the floors of homes for years, but now the company’s founder wants to clean something much more important: Pollution-filled rivers. In a recent interview, James Dyson revealed he has sketched a design for a river barge that can harvest some of the waste Read More...