Several years ago microbeads, which are tiny pieces of plastic, no bigger than the head of a pin, began appearing in soaps, facial cleansers, toothpastes and many other body care products. Cleansers with microbeads soared in popularity after manufacturers touted their exfoliating effects, but recently, the environmental impact of these non-biodegradable beads has sparked concern.
Microbeads are so small that sewage treatment plants do not have the capability to filter them out completely before they are expelled into open water. The sheer volume and toxicity of the microbeads being flushed into lakes, rivers and oceans has lead scientists to call attention to the problem. In 2013, scientists studying microplastics discovered a high concentration
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Some of those toxins are known endocrine disrupters, which may negatively impact the reproductive systems of the wildlife that ingest the contaminated microplastics, or the reproductive systems of their predators.
In December of 2015, the United States House of Representatives passed the Microbead Free Waters Act, authored by Rep. Frank Pallone (New Jersey-Democrat) and Rep. Fred Upton (Michigan-Republican). Should this piece of legislation pass the senate, it will phase out the production of personal care products with microbeads manufactured and sold by American companies no later than July 1, 2017.*
Some states such as Illinois and Colorado have already passed legislation that phases out the sale of these products, and some companies, such as Unilever, have voluntarily agreed to stop manufacturing hygiene and beauty products with microbeads because of these environmental concerns. Other companies, such as Johnson and Johnson, have come out in opposition of currently proposed legislation in California, even though they pledged a microbead ban back in 2013. There is also concern regarding the Illinois bill, that loopholes have allowed companies to continue to put non-biodegradable plastics in their