Plastic-eating bacteria discovered in 80% of the world’s oceans. These microorganisms have evolved a specialized enzyme (M5-PETase) to break down PET plastic, primarily concentrated in the South Atlantic Gyre and the equatorial belt of the Indian Ocean.

The Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) has revealed in its latest research that over 400 types of bacteria colonize the surfaces of microplastics, with approximately one-third being pathogenic bacteria capable of triggering various human diseases. The research team strongly advises: “All volunteers participating in beach cleanups should wear gloves throughout the activity and thoroughly wash their…

A 4,000-liter diesel spill in the Tjeldsund waters off northern Norway has formed a blue oil slick that impedes gas exchange in the water column. Toxic substances in the diesel, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), readily adsorb onto sediments and accumulate through the food chain. This poses acute and chronic threats to plankton, shallow-water…

Long-term discharge of untreated industrial wastewater from phosphate processing plants in Gabès, Tunisia, has caused ocean acidification levels in Gabès Bay to rise by 30%, with local sea areas seeing pH levels drop below 7.2. The latest monitoring in November 2025 revealed a 67% decline in the bay’s benthic biodiversity index compared to a decade…

On November 10, beaches in East Sussex, southern England, were covered in vast quantities of black plastic microbeads (“biobeads”), described by environmental groups as “the worst plastic microbead pollution incident on record.” These beads, used to filter bacteria in sewage treatment plants, were released into the ocean during heavy rainfall due to equipment failure.

The 306-hectare Zostera marina seagrass bed restored in Qingdao West Coast New Area, China, has boosted Tang Island Bay’s biodiversity index by 40% through a model prioritizing natural recovery supplemented by artificial restoration. This experience was shared globally at the October 21st Symposium on Seagrass Conservation and Climate Change Synergies. The China-Fiji collaborative “South Pacific…

Large amounts of white foam have appeared on beaches in the eastern coastal city of Chennai, India, stretching for several kilometers and emitting a pungent odor. Preliminary analysis indicates that recent heavy rains washed untreated sewage and industrial wastewater into the sea. Chemicals like detergents and phosphates mixed with seawater, forming foam through wave action.…

Six marine ecological restoration projects from China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region have been honored in the inaugural United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2016-2025) Marine Ecological Protection and Restoration Competition. These initiatives span diverse ecosystems including mangroves, coral reefs, and coastal bays. Among them, the “Practical Case of Ecological Conservation and Restoration…

A Chinese research team discovered in deep-sea sediments of the Philippine Sea that small-sized fibers and PP/PE microplastics may pose chronic hazards to benthic organisms due to their strong adsorption properties. Meanwhile, the Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute found that after replacing ecological buoys in Sangou Bay, microplastic abundance in surface seawater decreased by 77.57%,…

The 2025 Global Tipping Points Report, led by the University of Exeter in the UK, confirms that warm-water coral reefs have become the first Earth system to cross a climate tipping point. Global average temperatures have risen by 1.4°C above pre-industrial levels, exceeding the 1.2°C thermal tolerance threshold for coral reefs. This has triggered the…