(Natural News) Marine microorganisms may also be threatened by plastic pollution in the ocean. Since one type of photosynthetic bacteria accounts for 10 percent of the oxygen production on Earth, we need to take steps to protect the microbes before we run out of breathable air. Australian researchers issued a warning following their recently published […]

(Natural News) The ocean has become a plastic soup. In 2010, scientists estimated that eight million tons of plastic are dumped into the ocean every year, and the numbers only increase each year. This is a problem for marine animals and humans alike. To prevent this problem from getting bigger, people have to start implementing (and […]

(Natural News) Researchers from the School of Oceanography at the University of Washington have discovered how some microorganisms that live in portions of the ocean where oxygen is almost absent manage to thrive. Called marine oxygen-deficient zones (ODZs), these regions are sandwiched between the oxygen-rich surface and the deep layers. In their study, which appeared […]

(Natural News) The oceans contain far more species of viruses than previously believed. While not all of them are harmful to humans, they may exert a considerable effect on the environment. Following an extended cruise around the world aboard a sailing ship, an international research team reported finding nearly 200,000 species of marine viruses. They released […]

(Natural News) In the movies, sharks threaten humans, especially if they rode tornadoes inland. In real life, however, it’s the other way around: Human commercial fishing threatens to drive sharks and their relatives, rays, into extinction. A U.K. team counted the number of sharks and rays accidentally caught by small-scale fisheries in the South West […]

(Natural News) Plastic pollution isn’t just unpleasant to look at, it’s one of the biggest threats to environmental health currently facing our planet. There is little doubt that plastic has revolutionized our world, but unfortunately, it may also be what destroys it. Plastic waste pollutes our land and our water, leeches toxic chemicals into our […]

(Natural News) Volcanoes could have caused the worst mass extinction on Earth. According to researchers from the University of Cincinnati (UC) and the China University of Geosciences (CUG), the most reliable evidence for this outcome comes from a recent mercury discovery buried in layers of ancient rock. The event, known as the Permian-Triassic (P-T) extinction, took place 252 million years ago […]

(Natural News) Researchers have discovered that fish living in damaged coral reefs have an alternative source of sustenance aside from the reefs where they live. An Australian study recently found that ocean currents haul in considerable amounts of food to reef structures; enough to keep the remaining population fed. A healthy coral reef produces large amounts […]

(Natural News) Plastic waste is one of the leading causes of environmental problems today. While everyone’s looking for ways to solve this looming crisis, researchers from Yale University suggest using a mushroom that feasts on plastic. In their study, which appeared in Applied and Environmental Microbiology, the team said that Pestalotiopsis microspora can not only live off polyurethane – a compound […]

(Natural News) Single-use plastics cause plastic pollution, a problem that affects rivers, lakes, and oceans. To address this concern, researchers from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) developed a recycling process that turns various materials made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) into other useful products that will last longer. NREL’s research was published in the journal Joule. […]