House votes to ban microbeads in the U.S.

Yesterday, the U.S. House of Representatives voted in favor of banning the use of synthetic micro-plastics in personal care products. The bill was introduced by New Jersey representative Frank Pallone last summer, and has since gained bipartisan support. A companion bill has also been brought to the Senate by Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters of Michigan. Plastic microbeads are a source of plastic pollution in waterways. Manufacturers add tiny plastic beads to soaps, body washes, face washes and toothpaste, sometimes to increase exfoliation or for aesthetic reasons. But the tiny size of these beads makes them too small to be properly filtered out by municipal water treatment facilities, and the plastic inevitably end up in rivers, lakes and the oceans. Senators Stabenow and Peters, along with Representative Fred Upton of Michigan all expressed concern over this source of plastic pollution ending up in the Great Lakes. Illinois was the first state to pass a microbead ban in the summer of 2014, with a similar concern. The federal ban will supersede the state bans, and allow for a faster phase-out according to Pallone. If the House bill is made into law, the phase-out will begin in 2017 and microbeads will completely banned by 2018. The ban specifically addresses the use of synthetic plastics. Some environmental groups say the bill would be stronger if it also banned so-called “biodegradable” plastics. According to the environmental non-profit 5 Gyres, this gives manufacturers too much leeway to create bioplastics that might still harm the environment. They say that there is no biodegradable plastic that has been shown to be safe for the environment yet. Only the state of California has passed a microbead ban that also prohibits bioplastics. Natural alternatives to microbeads are uses by some personal care manufacturers, such as sugar, salt and ground apricot pits. A greenhouse completely envelopes this self-sustaining home, to give it extra warmth during ... Located on the shore of the Adriatic Sea, this is a real-life "sea ... Constructed using free and recycled materials, this New Zealand tiny house feels homey ... Have you been looking for a reason to go green? Look no further ... Our email newsletters will help you keep up with all things green! We're in the midst of the sixth great extinction right now, with the ...