Being Green - 08 December 2017

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It’s Not Too Late; and There’s Always Hope…and it may lie in microbiotechnology.
(The Micro-Algae Lamp www.fermentalg.com)

Last week I mentioned the progress being made on ocean cleanup – and that’s about 99percent plastic pollution threatening the seas. Increasing amounts of funding are going into it worldwide as governments and marine environment organisations realize we have a huge crisis. A bit late you may say – like Cape Town’s Water Resilience plans; but better late than never. It needs the likes of icons such as Elon Musk and Boyan Slat to point the way with their individual drive and zeal.
It must be a human characteristic that nothing is done until it’s too late, or nearly too late!
A UN gathering of environment ministers in Kenya this week issued a sort of edict about plastic pollution in the oceans. It must stop! is the general drift of it, but as with so many United Nations declarations, edicts or whatever you want to call them, there’s a certain grand vagueness. Anyway, the signal has been sent.
Scientists welcomed the statement, but were unhappy the agreement was only based in principle, with no firm targets or timetables.
Ministers say it's a milestone because it shows governments, industry and the public that a major change is needed. All the delegates made encouraging noises about the need to move faster, as the oceans face not only plastic dumping but the direct effects of climate change.
8 Dec 2017 English South Africa Health & Fitness

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