New Jersey passes legislation to ban microbeads
The bill approved 72-0, will prohibit the making, selling or promoting of products like soap, face scrubs and toothpastes containing the plastic beads due to environmental impact concerns.
A companion bill has also been introduced in the state Senate, if it becomes law, 'A3083' will see the prohibition on the production and manufacturing begin on 1 January 2015. The bans on sales and promotion would start three years later.
According to the director of government affairs for the Chemistry Council of New Jersey, Ed Waters, the group was consulted by the sponsors of the bill and amendments were made to give the industry time to "sell through" the products it has already manufactured.
"Industry groups the Council represents have already begun phasing out use of microbeads," he adds.
Similar bans have been considered recently in Illinois, which followed New York and California in banning the tiny plastic particles in personal care goods.
That law seeks to prohibit the manufacture of products containing the substance by end of sale in 2018 and a complete ban by 2019.
Brands are even planning microbead phase outs in Europe..
Procter & Gamble, Estée Lauder and Clarins have all committed to remove microbeads in Europe; though according to The Independent, they have not volunteered a timescale for this.
Unilever and Boots have joined King of Shaves in pledging to end production by the end of next year, while L'Oréal, Johnson & Johnson, and Reckitt Benckiser are committing to eliminate the beads from products by 2017.
The pledges confirm brands are responding to the growing awareness of the potential environmental impact of the beads, which can been found in lakes and rivers following their journey through water treatment processes.
Environmental impact: really so bad?
The Cosmetic, Toiletry and Perfumery Association has noted that the issue over the environmental impact of the beads may be being overblown.
The presence of "micro size plastic" in the water supply certainly isn’t solely down to personal care products: synthetic fabric being broken down in washing machines has been called up by Dr Chris Flowers, CTPA director general, as another key contributor.
However, studies have shown that the longevity of the beads, which can take over 100 years to degrade, means their presence in water sources is leading to increasing incidents of contamination of wildlife, as they can collect chemicals from their surrounding environments.
