Environment

Plastic Eating Bacteria

British researchers have identified naturally occurring lake bacteria that grow faster and more effectively by eating plastic bags, breaking them down to natural carbon compounds.

Writing in the journal Nature Communications, Cambridge scientists suggest that enriching waters with particular species of bacteria could be a natural way to remove plastic pollution from the environment. They add that “plastic pollution is stimulating the whole food web in lakes, because more bacteria means more food for the bigger organisms like ducks and fish.”

Alpine Heat

Swiss scientists say the freezing point in the Alps has risen to a record altitude above the summits this summer as Europe bakes in unprecedented heat. Weather balloons had to rise 5,184 metres above sea level to reach freezing, 70 metres higher than the previous record set in 1995.

Glaciologist Matthias Huss says accelerating global heating, especially in July, has caused freshwater glaciers to melt faster than ever. Wild species accustomed to cold climates are migrating higher and are reaching a point where they have nowhere else to go.

A melting glacier has shifted the border between Switzerland and Italy, putting a mountain lodge that was once entirely in Italy now technically two-thirds in Switzerland.