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06/30/2015 02:49 PMPress Release June 29, 2015: HARTFORD, CT – A ban on small plastic pollutants known as "microbeads" has received passage in both houses of the General Assembly. Microbeads are small, non-biodegradable plastic pellets commonly added to many cosmetic products, including facial scrubs, soaps, shampoos, and toothpastes. A list of the many products containing microbeads can be found on this website.
This evening Senator Ted Kennedy, Jr. (D-Branford) secured final legislative approval of a ban on the sale or manufacture of personal care products containing microbeads in Connecticut.
"Connecticut voted today to further protect our rivers, streams, and Long Island Sound from harmful plastic substances," said Senator Kennedy, Senate Chair of the Environment Committee. "Microbeads are unnecessary additives that are washed down the drain and are consumed by aquatic life, injuring numerous fish species and contaminating our food supply. I am proud to have worked alongside advocates, industry representatives, and my colleagues in the legislature to secure passage of the strongest microbead law in the nation."
"After seeing the detrimental effects they have on the environment, some companies, like Unilever, are even voluntarily opting to remove microbeads from their products. This bill will ensure that all companies follow suit and potential biodegradable microbead options are fully vetted," said Representative James Albis (D-East Haven), House Chair of the Environment Committee.
Microbeads are added to personal care products for texture and coloring, but have been shown to also cause serious environmental damage to aquatic environments. The bill passed today prohibits the sale and manufacture of any personal care product which contains microbeads.
The bill passed this evening also encourages personal care product companies to develop biodegradable microbeads and submit a study to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) showing that biodegradable microbeads are environmentally safe. Following submission and approval of this study, it will be forwarded to the General Assembly for a vote on the use of biodegradable microbeads in Connecticut.
"This is a major victory for Long Island Sound," said Louis Burch of Citizens Campaign for the Environment. "Having a pretty face shouldn't equate to having polluted water. The good news is there are plenty of safe, non-polluting alternatives including pumice, ground walnut shells and cocoa beans that are readily available to the cosmetics industry. CCE applauds Senator Ted Kennedy Jr., Representative James Albis, Representative John Shaban and the Sound Keeper Terry Backer for their leadership, as well as the bipartisan group of more than 30 co-sponsors who lent their support to this important legislation."
It is estimated that Connecticut residents wash three tons of microbeads down the drain every year. Once entering the wastewater system, many of these tiny plastic beads find themselves carried into streams and rivers, ultimately flowing into Long Island Sound. The ability of microbeads to contaminate aquatic environments has become a great cause for concern in Connecticut and around the country. A recent survey of Lake Ontario found as many as 1.1 million plastic particles floating around every square kilometer.
Microbeads are not biodegradable, allowing them to build up in the environment and act as a transport mechanism for pesticides, flame retardants, bisphenol-A and other toxic substances. Aquatic live often mistakes the microbeads for food, consuming them, which leads to a slow and painful death through digestive disruption or other health impacts. The beads store themselves in the fatty tissues of the fish who consume them, where they can be passed up the food chain to larger fish, wildlife, and ultimately humans.