More than 57 million pounds of PPE and other COVID-related plastic waste have polluted the oceans since pandemic began, study finds
CBSN
The world has been fighting the COVID-19 pandemic for more than a year and a half, and a new study shows that in the process, Earth's oceans have become far more polluted with waste from discarded masks, gloves and other protective items.
"The recent COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increased demand for single-use plastic, intensifying pressure on this already out-of-control problem," the study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, says.
Researchers found that since the pandemic began, 193 countries have generated roughly 8.4 million tons of pandemic-associated plastic waste. Of that, roughly 25,900 tons — or more than 57 million pounds — of waste, including personal protection equipment (PPE), has ended up in the ocean. Nearly three-quarters of that waste, researchers said, was generated by hospitals.
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