0:00:03 > 0:00:06Hi, I'm Ricky with your Wednesday morning news hit.
0:00:06 > 0:00:08Here's what's coming up...
0:00:08 > 0:00:11Are romances at school affecting your results?
0:00:11 > 0:00:14Plus - The bots giving Wall-E a run for his money.
0:00:14 > 0:00:17Keep watching!
0:00:26 > 0:00:29Good morning - I'm Ricky, here with your Wednesday
0:00:29 > 0:00:30morning news hit.
0:00:30 > 0:00:32First today, you'll probably have heard about the big
0:00:32 > 0:00:35question of the moment - how can we cut the amount of plastic
0:00:35 > 0:00:36we use and throw away?
0:00:36 > 0:00:40More than eight million tonnes of plastic ends up in the world's
0:00:40 > 0:00:40oceans each year.
0:00:40 > 0:00:42That's a truckload every minute!
0:00:42 > 0:00:43So, what's the problem with plastic?
0:00:43 > 0:00:48Martin's been finding out...
0:00:48 > 0:00:50These are trash islands in the Caribbean.
0:00:50 > 0:00:52It looks like a stretch of land but it's floating
0:00:52 > 0:00:58rubbish like plastic bags, spoons and bottles.
0:00:58 > 0:01:02They are created by currents in the ocean.
0:01:02 > 0:01:05Sadly, this is not the only place in the world where plastic
0:01:05 > 0:01:07pollution is a problem.
0:01:07 > 0:01:10Plastic is all around the planet on every shoreline,
0:01:10 > 0:01:15it's even down to the deep ocean, places we have never visited.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19We go there for the first time and our rubbish has beaten us there.
0:01:19 > 0:01:23Back in the day, milk and fizzy drinks used to be bought in glass
0:01:23 > 0:01:26bottles and food would be mostly wrapped in paper.
0:01:26 > 0:01:34Now, plastic is in lots of things we use every day,
0:01:35 > 0:01:40and it IS really useful.
0:01:40 > 0:01:43300 million tonnes are produced each year, but 40% of that is for stuff
0:01:43 > 0:01:45we will only use once before it's thrown away,
0:01:45 > 0:01:47like straws, crisp packets, bottles and carrier bags.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49How does plastic end up in the ocean?
0:01:49 > 0:01:52Some of it is blown in, lots of it comes from rivers,
0:01:52 > 0:01:55some can come a long way, some from ships at sea,
0:01:55 > 0:02:00Some is left by tourists on beaches.
0:02:00 > 0:02:01Some enters by the toilet.
0:02:01 > 0:02:04There's a whole range of ways plastic can get there,
0:02:04 > 0:02:08the problem is once it's there, that is where it will stay.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11Scientists are warning that within the next 30 years the amount
0:02:11 > 0:02:13of plastic in our oceans could outweigh the fish.
0:02:13 > 0:02:17Each year, 100,000 animals in the sea are killed by plastic.
0:02:17 > 0:02:19It can hurt or trap them, and they can also
0:02:19 > 0:02:22mistake it for food.
0:02:22 > 0:02:30One in three sea turtles and almost 90% of sea birds have eaten it.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38When the fish leaves the ocean and it ends up on our dinner table,
0:02:38 > 0:02:40are we eating plastic as well?
0:02:40 > 0:02:43We recently looked at fish collected locally, of 500 fish we found
0:02:43 > 0:02:48a third had small quantities of plastic in their gut.
0:02:48 > 0:02:50It's not a cause for concern for eating those fish,
0:02:50 > 0:02:54the quantities are quite small, unless we do something about it
0:02:54 > 0:03:01the quantities in fish, birds and will increase.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04There are lots of groups trying to help tackle plastic pollution
0:03:04 > 0:03:06and the government is promising to do more.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08But there are ways we can all help right now.
0:03:08 > 0:03:09Here are Richard's top tips.
0:03:09 > 0:03:12Make sure you always throw your rubbish in the bin.
0:03:12 > 0:03:14If you don't need something, don't use it.
0:03:14 > 0:03:15And of course, recycle when you can.
0:03:15 > 0:03:19If you want to know more about how plastic affects our planet head over
0:03:19 > 0:03:27to Newsround online where we've got a full guide.
0:03:28 > 0:03:29Next, are teen romances bad for your grades?
0:03:29 > 0:03:32Well, that's what one headteacher in North Wales thinks,
0:03:32 > 0:03:34so much so that he wrote to his pupils telling
0:03:34 > 0:03:35them to avoid them.
0:03:35 > 0:03:43Well, let's hear what some Year 10s think ...
0:03:43 > 0:03:45I don't think teachers should be allowed to tell
0:03:45 > 0:03:47you what you want to do because it's your private life
0:03:47 > 0:03:52and you should be able to do what you want.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55If you have a boyfriend or girlfriend, you won't be
0:03:55 > 0:03:57able to think straight, but you could be the same
0:03:57 > 0:04:05about friends or family problems.
0:04:07 > 0:04:08It can be a distraction.
0:04:08 > 0:04:10Situations where people are not revising or doing the work.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14It may be on everyone else's mind whether you will break up, so that
0:04:14 > 0:04:16would cause a lot of drama between not just the people
0:04:16 > 0:04:24involved in the relationship but everybody around them.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27If it affects their grades personally, then that
0:04:27 > 0:04:28could be fair enough,
0:04:28 > 0:04:31but to say it to a whole group of people when you don't know
0:04:31 > 0:04:34if it's affecting them or not, I think it's unfair.
0:04:34 > 0:04:37What you do in your free time is up to you, if you choose to revise
0:04:37 > 0:04:41and do the studying then you will get the best grades, it's up
0:04:41 > 0:04:42to you what you choose to do.
0:04:42 > 0:04:44Well, that's what they thought, but what about you?
0:04:44 > 0:04:47You've been voting online and can you believe it,
0:04:47 > 0:04:49you are completely split - half of you think teen romances
0:04:49 > 0:04:52are bad for your grades and half of you don't.
0:04:52 > 0:04:53Here's some of the comments you left.
0:04:53 > 0:04:58One person said "It depends on how seriously you are taking
0:04:58 > 0:05:02the relationship - if it's the only thing
0:05:02 > 0:05:05you're thinking about then it will affect your grades."
0:05:05 > 0:05:07Another said "It's about how you use your time.
0:05:07 > 0:05:08Maybe if you study with your boyfriend/girlfriend,
0:05:08 > 0:05:11it will not affect your grades, rather improve them."
0:05:11 > 0:05:13And what about this one: "Teachers can't get
0:05:13 > 0:05:14in the way of relationships.
0:05:14 > 0:05:17It is your private business not theirs!"
0:05:17 > 0:05:22Thanks for all your comments guys!
0:05:22 > 0:05:24Finally - move over, Wall-E, there are some
0:05:24 > 0:05:27new cleaning droids in town.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31These four dirt-busting bots were put through their paces
0:05:31 > 0:05:35at a train station in Germany.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37They raced against each other as part of a contest to choose
0:05:37 > 0:05:42a new cleaning machine to keep the German stations spick and span.
0:05:42 > 0:05:48I think this guy needs to get a wriggle on!
0:05:48 > 0:05:49That's your lot for this morning.
0:05:49 > 0:05:50Newsround's back this afternoon.
0:05:50 > 0:05:58Have a great day.