Bye bye, microbeads

[Isgrimnur]

Consumerist

If your favorite face wash includes tiny microbeads, you better savor it. After playing catch-up with several states, the U.S. has finally passed a measure that would keep the microscopic plastic spheres from going down the drain and possibly into the stomachs of our seafood.

President Barack Obama yesterday signed into law the Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015 [PDF], which would phase out the use of microbeads in consumer products over the next several years, MLive reports.
...
Under the bill, a ban on manufacturing products with the beads, the first step, would begin on July 1, 2017, followed by product-specific manufacturing and sales bans in 2018 and 2019.

The bill’s definition of a microbead — “any solid plastic particle” less than five millimeters in size intended for use as an exfoliant — also closes a potential loophole that environmental groups feared could keep the small spheres in use: simply using a different kind of plastic.
...
Last year, Illinois became the first state to pass an ordinance that would gradually fade out the use of microbeads beginning in 2017 and ending in 2019.

The state bill even had the cooperation of product manufacturers. An official with the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois said at the time that the quick deal resulted from unique circumstances, and the availability of substitute ingredients, such as oatmeal and sea salt.

Earlier this year, the state of California voted to phase out the use of microscopic exfoliating beads in personal care products sold in the state.

Michigan also considered a ban on the use of the beads this year. MLive reports that legislators debated the bill, but failed to reach a consensus.

The issue hasn’t just been on the minds of activists, either. Several major manufacturers, such as Proctor & Gamble, and Unilever, have pledged to phase out use of plastic microbeads.

In February 2014, L’Oréal said it would begin phasing out the materials this year in their Biotherm products and continue with Body Shop products in 2015. All of the company’s products are expected to be microbead-free by 2017.

Colgate-Palmolive has already discontinued using microbeads in all its products, telling Consumerist in a statement in October: “Some groups have raised concerns regarding the potential contribution of microbeads to pollution of the world’s oceans. Recognizing that consumers have questions, as of year-end 2014 we are no longer using this ingredient.”

[Moliere]

You can have my anal beads when you pry them from my cold dead, um, wait, what are we talking about? Oh MICRObeads. Carry on. Nothing to see here.

[hepcat]

I honestly hadn't even heard of microbeads. I just hope they don't take my bath salts away!

[Isgrimnur]

You're obviously not an analytical chemist.

[LawBeefaroni]

And good riddance. There are plenty of biodegradable alternatives. Plastic microbeads are terrible.

[Ralph-Wiggum]

There was a student doing work at the marine lab I work at on microbeads and, in general, microplastics in the water. The amount of this junk she could pull out of the water in just small sample was amazing.

[Holman]

House Microbead Liberty Caucus in 3, 2, 1...

[Isgrimnur]

The House passed it by voice vote, and the Senate passed it with Unanimous Consent.

[Ralph-Wiggum]

Look at your toothpaste ingredient list; if it contains polyethylene, it has microbeads.

[hepcat]

Mine has macrobeads.

[Archinerd]

I guess I'll just have to add them myself from now on. :/

[Kraken]

So now only criminals will have microbeads? Gonna be hard to make micronecklaces without them.

[Rip]

Could this spell the end of pearl necklaces?

[Pyperkub]

Why don't they just make the darned things biodegradeable? Isgrimsquatch, I'm looking at you...

[Isgrimnur]

Too little, too late

But a partnership between the bioplastics firm Metabolix and Honeywell, announced [March 3rd 2015], could find a solution to the pesky microbead dilemma that in turn could benefit consumers, companies and the environment.
...
The key is that the microbeads that Metabolix will provide Asensa, the personal care additives division of Honeywell, are made out of polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) biopolymers.
...
PHAs are generally derived from lipids or fats. In the case of Metabolix’s product, corn dextrose is the feedstock the company is using for now. “It’s essentially a fermented product, a polyester made from fermentation, which can then be turned into a polymer,” Senechal said when I asked how this product was different from others on the market. “But PHAs have a similar composition to cellulose or paper.” Hence their ability to break down exponentially quicker than plastic microbeads.

According to at least one study, these microbeads can biodegrade 80 percent within 14 to 18 days in water and in soil. They attract bacteria that see them as a source of food, hastening the biodegrading process. The microbeads are also compostable and do not release toxic substances once they enter a marine environment.

Whether these PHA-based microbeads will truly be a viable alternative remains to be seen — after all, it took years until the environmental effects of conventional microbeads were understood. Indeed, some environmental watchdogs are going to fret over the 20 percent that does not biodegrade in two or three weeks. But Metabolix and Honeywell could score themselves a booming business as more states act to ban the use of conventional plastic-based microbeads while companies scramble to find a substitute for a tiny ingredient that turned into a big problem.

[em2nought]

Now they need to ban "supposedly" disposable wet wipes next. What a disgusting mess that was. yuck

[Pyperkub]

Now they need to ban "supposedly" disposable wet wipes next. What a disgusting mess that was. yuck

I remember them showing a shot of what I think was the NY Sewer system and what those things did to the system. Ugh!

[Isgrimnur]

All they said was flushable. They flushed, didn't they?

Nonwoven cloths have been getting stuck in pipes and sewer machinery, creating massive, expensive clogs in New York, Washington DC, San Francisco, Toronto, Sydney, London and many other places for years, sparking lawsuits from cities and consumers.

Now, New York City’s city council, with the backing of Mayor Bill de Blasio, is working on a bill that would require companies to clearly label their products. Councilman Donovan Richards, who introduced the bill, told me that it was inspired by conversations with New York’s Department of Environmental Protection. The DEP is spending an extra $10m per year to process the cloths, he says.
...
Unfortunately, the majority of wipes on the market don’t biodegrade quickly enough to avoid clogging the pipes. According to Joe Munafo, a plumbing engineer with New York-based Dagher Engineering, even toilet paper - which is designed to biodegrade - can get caught in pipes with imperfections.
...
According to experts at Thames Water, flushable wipes were a major factor in London’s notorious fatberg, a 15-ton lump of congealed grease that nearly flooded the city’s already stressed sewer system and took three weeks to dismantle in 2013. “We have 59,000 miles of sewer, and fat and wet wipes are the main partners in ‘sewer abuse’ crime,” spokesman Simon Evans told the Guardian at the time.

More recently, wipes also have caused a big stink in New York City, where officials say they have resulted in $18m in equipment problems in the past five years. The city’s water management facilities are already straining at the seams without the wipes – in some areas, as little as one-tenth of an inch of stormwater per hour can overwhelm the sewer system and cause flash flooding.

[Isgrimnur]

The Guardian

Plastic microbeads can no longer be used in cosmetics and personal care products in the UK, after a long-promised ban came into effect on Tuesday. The ban initially bars the manufacture of such products and a ban on sales will follow in July.
...
The UK government first pledged to ban plastic microbeads in September 2016, following a US ban in 2015.

[Isgrimnur]

Canada

In June 2017, the Microbeads in Toiletries Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 151, No. 12 - June 14, 2017 (PDF version 4,285 K). These regulations will help protect the environment by reducing the quantity of plastic microbeads entering Canadian freshwater and marine ecosystems.
...
As of January 1, 2018, the manufacture and import of toiletries that contain plastic microbeads will be prohibited unless the toiletries are also natural health products or non-prescription drugs, in which case the prohibition will begin July 1, 2018.

As of July 1, 2018, the sale of toiletries that contain plastic microbeads will be prohibited, unless the toiletries are also natural health products or non-prescription drugs, in which case the prohibition will begin July 1, 2019.

[Isgrimnur]

Australia, Feb 2016

Environment Minister Greg Hunt has threatened to introduce a law to ban microbeads, the tiny particles that are found in face scrubs and body washes, if companies do not adhere to a voluntary phase-out.

As state and federal ministers met for the roundtable on plastic bags in Sydney today, Mr Hunt said the government was taking a "stronger stance" on this "important environmental issue".
...
"However, if by 1 July 2017 it is clear that the voluntary phase-out will not achieve what is effectively a widespread ban on microbeads, the Federal Government will take action to implement a ban in law."

Under the Government's current plan, companies in Australia have the option to remove microbeads from their products by July 2018.

[Max Peck]

Canada

In June 2017, the Microbeads in Toiletries Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 151, No. 12 - June 14, 2017 (PDF version 4,285 K). These regulations will help protect the environment by reducing the quantity of plastic microbeads entering Canadian freshwater and marine ecosystems.
...
As of January 1, 2018, the manufacture and import of toiletries that contain plastic microbeads will be prohibited unless the toiletries are also natural health products or non-prescription drugs, in which case the prohibition will begin July 1, 2018.

As of July 1, 2018, the sale of toiletries that contain plastic microbeads will be prohibited, unless the toiletries are also natural health products or non-prescription drugs, in which case the prohibition will begin July 1, 2019.

I'm having a difficult time reconciling "natural health product" with "contains plastic microbeads."

[Punisher]

Canada

In June 2017, the Microbeads in Toiletries Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 151, No. 12 - June 14, 2017 (PDF version 4,285 K). These regulations will help protect the environment by reducing the quantity of plastic microbeads entering Canadian freshwater and marine ecosystems.
...
As of January 1, 2018, the manufacture and import of toiletries that contain plastic microbeads will be prohibited unless the toiletries are also natural health products or non-prescription drugs, in which case the prohibition will begin July 1, 2018.

As of July 1, 2018, the sale of toiletries that contain plastic microbeads will be prohibited, unless the toiletries are also natural health products or non-prescription drugs, in which case the prohibition will begin July 1, 2019.

I'm having a difficult time reconciling "natural health product" with "contains plastic microbeads."

Why? When you plant a plastic microbead it grows into a plastic tree... Where did you think they came from?

[$iljanus]

Canada

In June 2017, the Microbeads in Toiletries Regulations were published in the Canada Gazette, Part II: Vol. 151, No. 12 - June 14, 2017 (PDF version 4,285 K). These regulations will help protect the environment by reducing the quantity of plastic microbeads entering Canadian freshwater and marine ecosystems.
...
As of January 1, 2018, the manufacture and import of toiletries that contain plastic microbeads will be prohibited unless the toiletries are also natural health products or non-prescription drugs, in which case the prohibition will begin July 1, 2018.

As of July 1, 2018, the sale of toiletries that contain plastic microbeads will be prohibited, unless the toiletries are also natural health products or non-prescription drugs, in which case the prohibition will begin July 1, 2019.

I'm having a difficult time reconciling "natural health product" with "contains plastic microbeads."

Why? When you plant a plastic microbead it grows into a plastic tree... Where did you think they came from?

Goes off to listen to Radiohead's Fake Plastic Trees...

[Max Peck]

Why? When you plant a plastic microbead it grows into a plastic tree... Where did you think they came from?

I just assumed that when a mommy microbead and a daddy microbead love each other very much, then Dow Chemical sprogs another trillion of them.

[em2nought]

Latest on the topic within the topic, Retailers being sued over "flushable" wipes. http://www.tmz.com/2017/12/04/flushable ... rt-target/