Nanoplastics linked to heart attack, stroke and early death, study finds – CNN

Microplastics with a diameter of 0.5 μm (small green spheres) penetrating the cytoplasm of MH-22a hepatocyte cells. (by Karimov Denis and Valova Iana, captured by ZEISS Axio Imager 2, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia).https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Microplastics_that_have_penetrated_inside_cells.png

People with microplastics or nanoplastics in their carotid artery tissues were twice as likely to have a heart attack, stroke or die from any cause over the next three years than people who had none, a new study found…“To date, our study is the first that associated the plastic contamination with human diseases,” said Raffaele Marfella, lead author of the study published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine…

The “Vanité” Series by 1011

"Vanité" Series by 1011 highlights the climate crisis and fragility of life as average global temperatures rise. Upper row: Hydrangea at +2.8º C, finished piece process images; Lower row: Buttercup at 1.5º C, finished piece and process images (colored pencils and pencil highlight) 2022, Adagp © 1011, used with permission.

“A humble flower is the labor of centuries.” – William Blake from the Artist’s Statement:“The title (of this collection): “Vanité” refers to the pride of Men who, like Icarus, think they can conquer nature through technological omnipotence industrialization, while in truth, only offer death…” Tulip at +2.1ºC in the “Vanité” series by 1011 (colored pencils and […]

Microplastics found in every human placenta tested in study – the Guardian

Florida Sea Grant agent Maia McGuire sampling for microplastics in a freshwater stream and microplastics, July 21st, 2017 (courtesy of Florida Sea Grant CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 DEED via Flickr).

Scientists express concern over health impacts, with another study finding particles in arteries…The scientists analysed 62 placental tissue samples and found the most common plastic detected was polyethylene, which is used to make plastic bags and bottles. A second study revealed microplastics in all 17 human arteries tested and suggested the particles may be linked to clogging of the blood vessels…

Scientists warn that a crucial ocean current could collapse, altering global weather – the Los Angeles Times

The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation acts as a conveyor belt of ocean water from Florida to Greenland. Along the journey north, water near the surface absorbs greenhouse gases, which sink down as the water cools near Greenland. In this way, the ocean effectively buries the gases deep below the surface (Courtesy of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, caption by Ellen T. Gray)

Scientists warn that a crucial ocean current could collapse, altering global weather…The Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC, is a system of ocean currents that circulate water in the Atlantic Ocean like a conveyor belt, helping to redistribute heat and regulate global and regional climates. New research, however, warns that the AMOC is weakening under a warming climate, and could potentially suffer a dangerous and abrupt collapse with worldwide consequences…

Decades after the US buried nuclear waste abroad, climate change could unearth it – Grist Magazine

Aerial view of the Runit Dome (or Cactus Dome), Runit Island, Enewetak Atoll c. 1977-1980. The crater created by the Cactus shot of Operation Hardtack I was used as a burial pit to inter 84,000 cubic meters of radioactive soil scraped from the various contaminated Enewetak Atoll islands Courtesy of US Defense Special Weapons Agency, Public domain, via Wikimedia).

A new report says melting ice sheets and rising seas could disturb waste from U.S. nuclear projects in Greenland and the Marshall Islands…The report summarizes disagreements between Marshall Islands officials and the U.S. Department of Energy regarding the risks posed by U.S. nuclear waste. The GAO recommends that the agency adopt a communications strategy for conveying information about the potential for pollution to the Marshallese people.

It’s not just toxic chemicals. Radioactive waste was also dumped off Los Angeles coast – the Los Angeles Times

Sea Floor Sand (by Dimitris Siskopoulos from Alexandroupolis, Greece, CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia).

For decades, a graveyard of corroding barrels has littered the seafloor just off the coast of Los Angeles. It was out of sight, out of mind — a not-so-secret secret that haunted the marine environment until a team of researchers came across them with an advanced underwater camera…Startling amounts of DDT near the barrels pointed to a little-known history of toxic pollution…but federal regulators recently determined that the manufacturer had not bothered with barrels. (Its acid waste was poured straight into the ocean instead.)…