Designed to shield us from the health crisis, the number of masks and gloves discarded in public spaces are contributing to another epidemic: plastic pollution. France has just doubled fines for littering face masks from €68 to €135. This comes after disheartening underwater images of surgical masks and latex gloves on the Mediterranean seabed. Designed to shield us from the health crisis, the number of masks and gloves discarded in public spaces are contributing to another epidemic: plastic pollution. France has just doubled fines for littering face masks from €68 to €135. This comes after disheartening underwater images of surgical masks and latex gloves on the Mediterranean seabed.