Clothes from UK brands found discarded in Ghana wetland dumps

An Unearthed and Greenpeace investigation found garments by UK brands on a rubbish dump in a protected wetland in Accra, Ghana. The reporters found items from Next, George at Asda and Marks & Spencer washed up near the dump, which is believed to have emerged in the past year. UK consumers discard about 1.5m tonnes of used textiles every year and Ghana received more discarded clothes than any other country. As the rubbish accumulates, new dump sites are springing up beyond urban areas, and in conservation areas that are vital for wildlife, the investigation found

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Daily Mail​

8 hours ago

• Daily Mail​

Do YOU know which bin soft plastics go in? Major shake-up to how households recycle the items most Brits don't know what to do with

A new kerbside recycling scheme for soft plastic items people often struggle to dispose of is set to be introduced across all councils in England by March 2027. North Somerset Council will be one of the first local authorities to rollout the new scheme which makes it easier to recycle items such as plastic bags, crisp packets, dog food pouches, bread bags and cling film. As of last week, people living in the area were asked to bag up their soft plastic waste and put it in their green mixed glass recycling bin before leaving it outside to be collected. They are asked to use a plastic bag they would already be throwing away, such as a bread bag and no bigger than a carrier bag, squash all the air out and tie it with a knot. Some people's collection day has changed as part of the switch to three weekly bin collections, whereas they were previously collected fortnightly. Anyone who faces a gap of over three weeks between their old and new collection day will have an interim one-off collection, which may be on a Saturday. Most people's recycling and waste collection day will also change in June to increase the efficiency of collections, reduce carbon emissions, and improve reliability of the service. People in North Somerset have one green box for mixed glass recycling, which is now also used for soft plastics, another for mixed paper and card, a third brown box for food waste, a large black bin for general waste and a green one for garden waste. They must also bag up small appliances, mixed textiles and clothes and batteries separately for collection. As of last week, people living in the district were asked to bag up their soft plastic waste and put it in their green mixed glass recycling bin before leaving it outside to be collected (stock image) So far, it is unclear what the rules will be for other councils as the scheme is rolled out across the rest of England over the next two years because each area has varying procedures and bins. North Somerset Council said soft plastic waste accounted for around 10 per cent of black bin waste in the county. It claims the new strategy will save them money by cutting back on black bin collections as they will be emptier and will allow residents to recycle more plastic. The recycled soft plastics will be reused and turned into items such as bags for life or traffic cones, the council said. Out of the 311,000 tonnes of plastics found on supermarket shelves just 6 per cent is recycled, according to one estimate from Recycle Now. Before the scheme, people had to take their soft plastic waste to their local supermarket who collected it and claimed they were sending it off to be recycled. The vast majority of people didn't and instead put it in with their general household waste. But those who did make the effort were perhaps wasting their time as an investigation by Everyday Plastic and the Environmental Investigation Agency found 70 per cent of the soft plastic being collected by supermarkets was actually being incinerated. Other areas which have implemented the new soft plastic kerbside recycling scheme include Solihull in the West Midlands, South Gloucestershire and East Dunbartonshire and Fife in Scotland. Maldon and Penarth are also trialling the scheme.

The Independent

10 hours ago

• The Independent

Food rations are halved in one of Africa's largest refugee camps after US aid cuts

Martin Komol sighs as he inspects his cracked, mud-walled house that is one rain away from fully collapsing. Nothing seems to last for him and 300,000 other refugees in this remote Kakuma camp in Kenya — now, not even food rations. Funding for the U.N. World Food Program has dropped after the Trump administration paused support in March, part of the widespread dismantling of foreign aid by the United States, once the world's biggest donor. That means Komol, a widowed father of five from Uganda, has been living on handouts from neighbors since his latest monthly ration ran out two weeks ago. He said he survives on one meal a day, sometimes a meal every two days. 'When we can't find anyone to help us, we become sick, but when we go to the hospital, they say it's just hunger and tell us to go back home,' the 59-year-old said. His wife is buried here. He is reluctant to return to Uganda, one of the more than 20 home countries of Kakuma's refugees. Food rations have been halved. Previous ration cuts led to protests in March. Monthly cash transfers that refugees used to buy proteins and vegetables to supplement the rice, lentils and cooking oil distributed by WFP have ended this month. Each refugee now receives 3 kilograms (6 pounds) of rice per month, far below the 9 kilograms recommended by the U.N. for optimal nutrition. WFP hopes to receive the next donation of rice by August. That's along with 1 kilogram of lentils and 500 milliliters of cooking oil per person. 'Come August, we are likely to see a more difficult scenario. If WFP doesn't receive any funding between now and then, it means only a fraction of the refugees will be able to get assistance. It means only the most extremely vulnerable will be targeted,' said Colin Buleti, WFP's head in Kakuma. WFP is seeking help from other donors. As dust swirls along paths between the camp's makeshift houses, the youngest children run and play, largely unaware of their parents' fears. But they can't escape hunger. Komol's 10-year-old daughter immerses herself in schoolbooks when there's nothing to eat. 'When she was younger she used to cry, but now she tries to ask for food from the neighbors, and when she can't get any she just sleeps hungry,' Komol said. In recent weeks, they have drunk water to try to feel full. The shrinking rations have led to rising cases of malnutrition among children under 5 and pregnant and breastfeeding mothers. At Kakuma's largest hospital, run by the International Rescue Committee, children with malnutrition are given fortified formula milk. Nutrition officer Sammy Nyang'a said some children are brought in too late and die within the first few hours of admission. The 30-bed stabilization ward admitted 58 children in March, 146 in April and 106 in May. Fifteen children died in April, up from the monthly average of five. He worries they will see more this month. 'Now with the cash transfers gone, we expect more women and children to be unable to afford a balanced diet,' Nyang'a said. The hospital had been providing nutrient-dense porridge for children and mothers, but the flour has run out after stocks, mostly from the U.S., were depleted in March. A fortified peanut paste given to children who have been discharged is also running out, with current supplies available until August. In the ward of whimpering children, Susan Martine from South Sudan cares for her 2-year-old daughter, who has sores after swelling caused by severe malnutrition. The mother of three said her family often sleeps hungry, but her older children still receive hot lunches from a WFP school feeding program. For some children in the camp, it's their only meal. The program also faces pressure from the aid cuts. 'I don't know how we will survive with the little food we have received this month,' Martine said. The funding cuts are felt beyond Kakuma's refugee community. Businessman Chol Jook recorded monthly sales of 700,000 Kenyan shillings ($5,400) from the WFP cash transfer program and now faces losses. Those who are hungry could slip into debt as they buy on credit, he said. ___ The Associated Press receives financial support for global health and development coverage in Africa from the Gates Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at

BBC News

21 hours ago

• BBC News

Leicester pupils paddle to school in clean air initiative

Pupils in Leicester paddled down the river to school as part of an initiative to raise awareness of air Castle Mead Academy (CMA) students arrived at school in a bell boat on Thursday after about 15 minutes on the River Air Day saw several other schools in the city taking part in a range of outdoor Burt, a geography teacher at CMA, said the paddling idea came from seeing busy traffic on the road outside the school and had received "a lot of support from colleagues and families alike". The pupils were instructed by Leicester Outdoor Pursuit Centre and had "a really good time", according to Ms said: "Days like today are really important to raise awareness of the air pollution which is caused by traffic, especially in busy cities like Leicester."We'd love to see some more sustainable infrastructure around our school, such as bollards or pedestrian crossings and things like that."The events were supported by Leicester City Council, as well as charities Sustrans and Living in the city, University of Leicester organised a walk in Victoria Park and the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust had information stands in hospital restaurants offering advice and information to staff and the public on how they can help reduce air pollution.