Scotland

The findings of a new study by the Marine Conservation Society of Scotland has spelled trouble for the Scottish fishing industry, with findings that indicate that plastics have become the largest threat to the Scottish maritime industry. According to an article in the Herald Scotland, which was written by senior news reporter Brian Donnelly, plastic pollution is costing the industry around £17 million per year to process. Writes Donnelly:

A startling new figure reported by the Independent indicates that shoppers in the United Kingdom have used a shocking 7. 96 billion single use bags last year, marking an increase of 400 million bags used in total. The article notes that plastic bag usage has increased all across the UK with the exception of Wales and Scotland. Wales, which is subject to a 5p bag tax, has seen a drop in usage of about 22 percent, while Scotland has, despite having no ban at present, dropped usage by a much smaller 0.3 percent.