In a partnership with the 5 Gyres Institute, Trash Free Maryland took to the Chesapeake Bay in November to study the presence of micropiastics in the water. Setting out from Deale, Md., the research team collected seven samples by dragging a trawl (拖网) for an hour at a time. The trawl was fitted with a cone-shaped (锥形的) net, whose holes measure 330 microns (微米) wide, about the width of two to three strands of human hair. Water flows through the main opening and the fine mesh (网眼) of net ensures anything suspended in the water is trapped behind.

In seven samples, the net picked up algae (海藻) trash, foam and plastic. According to the 5 Gyres Institute representative, the first sample collected contained almost 10 times the amount of plastic than would be collected in a typical ocean sample. The plastic found in the Chesapeake Bay samples included bits of bags, sheeting, fishing line and microbeads, which are small plastic scrubbers found in face wash, toothpaste and cleaning products. Microbeads in particular are a major source of microplastics pollution worldwide. They are small enough to bypass water treatment systems’ filters (过滤器) and end up in waterways. Scientists warn that chemicals and toxins (毒素) absorbed by microbeads and other microplastics could be passed on to organisms who mistake them for food and eat them, and could then be passed up higher and higher on the food chain, eventually reaching humans.

At the urban planning level, it's necessary to qualify “green infrastructure (基础设施)” within cities that can be used by non-human animals. The focus of planning is currently on providing ecosystem services that contribute to a healthy or at least tolerable living environment in cities that are experiencing increasingly extreme climates. Animals are rarely mentioned in this context.

Modern urban green space is characterized more by order, safety and ease of maintenance than by its quality as a habitat for animals. The objective associated with the term “urban green infrastructure” of combining the open space needs of people, animals and plants in an overall planning concept, of weighing up conflicts and using synergies (协同作用), is only being partially achieved at present.

If wildlife is to be able to live in cities, green space must also be planned for it. Furthermore, in order to support wildlife, urban space needs to be “barrier-free” and allow for the migration of species. The pathways wildlife chooses on land, in the air and in the water are very often impaired by human construction activities. Barrier-free planning for animals means that humans should reduce these destructive acts to give them a free path.

To improve the situation, we have developed what we call our Animal-Aided Design (AAD) method and are working to create ecological models and design tools for an architecture that considers animals and humans as partners in an integrated planning process. An architecture of cohabitation truly considers animals as fellow occupants of cities and tries to meet their needs as well. In this way, it opens up space where encounters between wildlife and people can occur and even has positive effects on our psychological and physical well-being.

Thanks to its cold environment, Antarctica remained largely untouched by humans for thousands of years. However, since the 1990s, the last true wilderness on the planet is becoming an increasingly popular destination for adventure-seeking tourists. Now, a new study states that the visitors may be leaving behind harmful bacteria(细菌) which could devastate the area’s native bird population.

Researchers believed that the Antarctic creatures were not affected by the danger due to the continent’s extreme weather. However, microbiologist Marta Cerdà-Cuéllar was not convinced this was true. She and some colleagues decided to examine samples from Antarctic birds for evidence of human bacteria. To ensure the waste was not polluted, the scientists had to collect it from the birds themselves. This was no easy task. If they missed catching a skua at first go, the bird never came close again.

It took the scientists four years, from 2008—2011, to collect fecal(粪便) samples of 666 adult birds from 24 local species. The results of their study revealed the presence of several types of human bacteria in the bird waste.

＂While we should do as much as possible to reduce transmission, it’s hard to believe that we will stop tourism and science at these sites, and so it is hard to believe that humans won’t continue to transmit pathogens(病原体).＂ said Kyle Elliott.

Experts, including González-Solís, believe the only way to prevent the mass destruction of the birds, is to introduce stricter regulations or, at least, obey the ones already in place. For example, while the Antarctica Treaty states clearly visitors carry their waste back home to protect the original environment, the regulation is rarely obeyed. Hopefully, officials will take steps to protect the easily hurt birds before it’s too late.