Miss Universe beauties: Say goodbye to microbeads

I t’s ironic that something that’s supposed to make us beautiful (at least on the outside) could cause something so ugly. Of course, we’re talking about cosmetic/personal care products that contain plastic microbeads that pollute our oceans.

As the 65th Miss Universe coronation night approaches, a local environmental group sends this urgent plea to all the young, gorgeous beauties who have come together from different corners of the world: Please don’t use or endorse personal care/cosmetic products (PCCPs) that contain plastic microbeads, a global ocean pollutant. EcoWaste Coalition, a waste and pollution watch group, is asking the Miss U candidates to “lend their voices to amplify the mounting demand to protect the oceans and aquatic life from the adverse effects of microplastic pollution.”

NO PLASTIC BEAUTIES

Aileen Lucero, national coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition, notes, “Today’s beauty queens are known advocates for environmental, health, humanitarian and cultural causes. As known consumers and promoters of PCCPs, we call upon them to add the removal of microplastics in PCCPs to their list of advocacy issues for a healthier planet. By taking a stance in favor of plastic microbead-free PCCPs, beauty queens could sway manufacturers to voluntarily replace microplastics with biodegradable exfoliating agents that will pose no risk to ocean health.”

Lucero adds, “A wide array of people speaking out against plastic microbeads could also motivate regulators to act.”

Plastic microbeads are any solid plastic particles, measuring less than five millimeters (the size of a pinhead). They are found in a variety of personal care and cosmetic products you probably use every day, such as exfoliating scrubs, facial cleansers, shower gels, and toothpastes, to name a few.

“These extremely tiny plastic particles from PCCPs can act like sponge, absorbing toxic pollutants in the oceans, which are ultimately ingested by fish and other aquatic animals who mistake microbeads for food,” Lucero elaborates. “Plastic microbeads from PCCPs are aggravating the alarming ‘plasticization’ of our oceans.”

According to the United Nations Environment Programme ( UNEP), “for the last 50 years, microparticles of plastic, called microplastics, have been used in PCCPs, replacing natural options in a large number of cosmetic and personal care formulations.”

UNEP warns, “Washed down the drain, those particles can neither be collected for recycling nor do they decompose in wastewater treatment facilities, inevitably ending up in the global ocean. Once in the ocean, plastic does not go away: It fragments, eventually breaking down into smaller pieces known as secondary microplastics.”

In 2013, over 299 million tonnes of plastic, says UNEP, were produced worldwide, some of which made their way to our oceans, costing approximately US$13 billion per year in environmental damage to marine ecosystems.

Just beat it

EcoWaste Coalition stresses, “Taking action now against plastic microbeads in PCCPs, reducing plastic bag use, and preventing the spillage of plastic waste into the oceans are essential steps that must be undertaken to stem the tide of microplastic pollution, which could have a devastating impact on ocean health and food security, especially in fish-eating nations like the Philippines.”

Beat the microbeads? Yes, the US is the first country in the world to announce it would ban microbead use in cosmetics. Before he stepped down, former US President Barack Obama signed a bill prohibiting the selling and distribution of products containing microbeads. With this bill, Americans will soon be saying goodbye to exfoliating shower gels.

FROM BREXIT TO MICROXIT

UK has announced plans to ban microbeads in cosmetics and cleaning products by 2017 (that’s this year).

Johnson & Johnson, manufacturer of Neutrogena and Clean & Clear, has committed to phasing out microbeads by the end of this year. Procter & Gamble, which produces Crest toothpaste, Gilette, and Olay, is set to stop using microbeads by next year.

Yesterday, the EcoWaste Coalition, in observance of the Zero Waste Month, sent a letter to the Department of Health and the Food and Drug Administration urging the government to prohibit the production, importation, distribution and sale of PCCPs containing plastic microbeads within a reasonable time frame. The letter, signed by Eileen Sison, EcoWaste Coalition president, reads in part:

We’re requesting DOH and FDA to initiate a participatory process that will lead to the expedited promulgation of a Department Administrative Order banning the use of microplastics such as plastic microbeads in the formulations of personal care and cosmetic products (PCCPs).

Plastic microbeads are made from synthetic polymers such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polymethyly methacrylate, nylon and other plastic materials and are used as abrasive scrubbers in PCCPs such as facial cleansers, body washes and toothpastes replacing natural exfoliating materials. Extremely small, these microplastic particles are washed down the drain, ending up in the oceans and the food chain.

We make this proposal as the prohibition against the manufacturing of rinse- off cosmetics containing intentionally- added plastic microbeads less than five millimeters in size takes effect on 1 July, 2017 under the US Public Law 114-114, also known as the “Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015,” amending Section 301 of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. https:// www. congress. gov/ bill/ 114th- congress/ housebill/1321/text

We further make this proposition as the government of New Zealand is set to prohibit plastic microbeads in PCCPs effective 1 July 2018. Taiwan, South Korea and UK had earlier announced plans to ban plastic microbeads in PCCPs. h t tp : / /www .pna .gov .ph / ind ex . php?idn=8&sid=&nid=8&rid=955506

We note that the governments of Austria, Belgium, Luxembourg, Netherlands and Sweden in 2014 have jointly called for a prohibition on microplastics in PCCPs as “of utmost priority” to “protect marine ecosystems – and seafood such as mussels – from contamination.” http://www. unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?Docume ntID=2817&ArticleID=11120&l=en

Even the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has stated: “Given the associated potential risks of microplastics, a precautionary approach is recommended toward microplastic management, with the eventual phaseout and ban in PCCPs.”

Recently-published scientific studies have pointed to the need to curb microplastic pollution of the oceans.

A study by researchers from RMIT University in Australia and Hainan University in China, published in Environmental Science and Technology in August 2016, showed “that up to 12.5 per cent of the chemical pollutants on the microbeads can pass into the fish that eat them.” According to Dr. Bradley Clarke, lead investigator from the RMIT’s Centre for Environmental Sustainability and Remediation, “the study was the first conclusive evidence that microbeads were capable of leaching toxic chemical pollutants into fish that eat them.” http:// www. rmit. edu. au/ news/ all- news/ 2016/ august/ microbeads- contaminate- fish- toxic- chemicals

Another study by Oona M. Lönnstedt and Peter Eklöv published in Science in June 2016 indicates that “exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations of microplastic polystyrene particles ( 90 micrometers) inhibits hatching, decreases growth rates, and alters feeding preferences and innate behaviors of European perch (Perca fluviatilis) larvae.” http://science.sciencemag.org/content/352/6290/1213

In this regard, we seek your immediate action so as to protect the marine ecosystems from microplastic pollution by prohibiting the production, importation, distribution and sale of PCCPs containing plastic microbeads within a reasonable time frame.