Grace O'Sullivan (Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief. I thank the Minister of State for that reply, which I appreciate. With regard to the marine strategy framework directive, the Minister talked about the environment. With marine plastics, and particularly microplastics and microbeads, we are now talking about human health. These plastics are being found in the crustacea, the little shrimp and different foods we eat here in Ireland. They were found in studies by the Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology, GMIT, and by the National University of Ireland, Galway, NUIG. This is an issue not just of the global environment but of human health. That is why it is vital that we address it as a matter of urgency.