Southern Water reviews ‘shocking’ microplastic research

A water company has said it is looking into research by a student who found high levels of microplastics in an Isle of Wight estuary.

University of Manchester student Liberty Turrell was awarded first class honors for her dissertation after carrying out tests on the Medina River estuary.

She said she found fibers mainly from wastewater sources such as laundry rather than plastic litter, which she described as “shocking”.

A spokesman for Southern Water told the BBC: “We welcome any research into this important issue and are considering the results of this latest publication.”