Kickstart: 'An environmental disaster' of plastic pellets in Sri Lanka

The beautiful beaches of Sri Lanka are a little more white and a lot less beautiful after a cargo ship carrying 76 metric tons of plastic pellets caught fire, spilling the resin out into the ocean and nearby beaches.

To make things even worse, the pellets likely were exposed to the same toxic chemicals that are being blamed for the fire on the MV X-Press Pearl, meaning that the material could be compounding dangers both to the waters and beaches.

"It's an environmental disaster," Sri Lankan marine biologist Asha de Vos told The Washington Post.

U.S.-based environmental group Mongabay notes that because of the chemical exposure, volunteers in Sri Lanka can't just go out and clean up beaches. Sri Lanka's Marine Environment Protection Authority is overseeing the collection and trying to keep pellets from washing back into the ocean.

There's a new place for plastics and designers to play with on future vehicles.

Bloomberg recently talked to auto designers about their approach to the front grille on electric cars.

With no engine to cool, automakers no longer need the grille, but they still want cars to look familiar. That gives them more flexibility in designs.

"We're having fun with that," says Rich Scheer, design director for the Hummer EV. "It's kind of an illusion."

The Hummer EV grille spells out the brand. Germany's BMW echoes the look of traditional cars while also providing a space to house cameras and sensors.

At Ford, designers for the Mustang Mach-E created a new fascia complete with the brand's Pony logo for the spot the grille used to be.

"Our customers don't want to drive a science project," said Gordon Platto, lead designer for the Mach-E. "They want a beautiful-looking vehicle that represents the brand properly."

Avon Rubber plc is about to update its name to reflect its wider product portfolio.

The maker of helmets, gas masks and other protective gear said during a call with financial analysts that it will change its name to Avon Protection plc during the second half of 2021.

The United Kingdom-based company has been fine-tuning its holdings to focus on protective equipment — including selling its plastics and rubber dairy equipment business Milkrite and buying helmet maker Team Wendy.