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The Last Word With Matt Cooper

Is Litter Killing Our Wildlife?

A photo of a dead swan surrounded by litter in the Grand Canal has received a huge reaction. Graham...
Sarah Stacey
Sarah Stacey

6:02 PM - 7 Feb 2019



The Last Word With Matt Cooper

Is Litter Killing Our Wildlife?

Sarah Stacey
Sarah Stacey

6:02 PM - 7 Feb 2019

Listen to this episode



A photo of a dead swan surrounded by litter in the Grand Canal has received a huge reaction.

Graham Prole, Youth Swan Project Co-ordinator with the Irish Midlands Ringing Group, says that although the swan's cause of death has yet to be confirmed, it's "very possible" that it is a pollution issue.

The swan was only four years old and had just been entering breeding season, and Graham says its death is very disappointing.

Environmental journalist John Gibbons says, "About a million sea birds annually are killed as a direct result of marine litter. They're not in a position to differentiate between floating, or semi-floating, marine litter and the food that they would normally scavenge for."

"The inland waterways are absolutely destroyed, especially in urban areas, by careless disposal of litter."

Is Litter Killing Our Wildlife?

00:00:00 / 00:00:00


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Environment Grand Canal Litter Swan Wildlife

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