Is a global effort to clean up ocean trash on the horizon?

Is it simply blah, blah, blah, or can we make the future of plastic amazing, argues Graham Lawton, after a worldwide meeting on cleaning up the seas yielded great promises?

THE SEYCHELDIAN GOVERNMENT DECIDED IN JUNE 2021 that it was time to outlaw what it had come to regard as a harmful recreational substance: balloon latex. Too many people were bringing balloons to the beach, and the popped leftovers ended up in the water, where turtles ate them. Most other single-use plastic goods, such as straws, bags, dining utensils, and cups, have previously been outlawed by the government. The balloon prohibition was the ultimate signal that the celebration was over, at least in the Seychelles.

The country's campaign on plastic was fueled in part by its environmental leadership...