Scientists say marine plastics set to treble

The amount of plastic ending up in the ocean is set to treble within a decade unless action is taken, a major report has warned. Senior government scientists have said that full damaging effects of seaborne plastics were not yet known, but that it could be aiding the spread of bugs such as E. coli.

Plastic is one of a number of environmental issues facing the world’s seas, along with rising sea levels and warming oceans, and metal and chemical pollution, the Foresight Future of the Sea Report for the Government said.

But it predicted there are also opportunities for the UK to cash in the global “ocean economy” – which is set to double to £2 trillion by 2030 – in areas where the country is a world leader, such as offshore wind.