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<div style="direction: ltr;font-family: Tahoma;color: #000000;font-size: 10pt;">After many states passed "greenwash" bans of plastic microbeads in personal care products, this federal law is a major victory. It will significantly reduce the amount of plastic
microbeads that enter the aquatic ecosystem. You may be interested to know some details of the ban.<br>
<br>
The ban covers "wash off" cosmetics. At first, I was very concerned to learn that the FDA does not consider soap a cosmetic. It was a tremendous relief to learn that almost all products sold as "soap" contain ingredients or are marketed in such a way that
the FDA defines them as cosmetics. The ban does not cover make-up, which is not intended to be washed off.<br>
<br>
The ban includes a preemption clause. Any local or state law that overlaps products covered by the federal ban are void. I don't know of any local or state microbead ban written to allow some portions to remain in force if other sections are preempted. Local
and state governments are free to write new microbead bans that cover "non-wash off" personal care products.
<br>
<br>
Though the laws definition of microbeads apparently does not include those added for visual appeal*, I was told by legislative aides of the bills sponsors (both House and Senate), that the intent of the law is to ban
<u>all</u> beads from covered products. It was their opinion that it is highly unlikely that any manufacturer will continue to use plastic microbeads for visual appeal. A number of environmental groups involved in this issue share this optimistic opinion.
I hope they are correct.<br>
<div>
<blockquote>* From page one of the law (my highlight):<font color="black" face="Tahoma" size="2"><span style="font-size:10pt;" dir="ltr"><font face="Times New Roman" size="2"><span style="font-size:16px;">
</span></font></span></font></blockquote>
<font color="black" face="Tahoma" size="2"><span style="font-size:10pt;" dir="ltr"><font face="Times New Roman" size="2"><span style="font-size:16px;">
<div style="margin-top:14pt;margin-bottom:14pt;margin-left:72pt;">15 ‘‘(A) the term ‘plastic microbead’ means any
</div>
<div style="margin-top:14pt;margin-bottom:14pt;margin-left:72pt;">16 solid plastic particle that is less than five millimeters
</div>
<div style="margin-top:14pt;margin-bottom:14pt;margin-left:72pt;">17 in size <span style="background-color:yellow;">
and is</span> intended to be used to exfoliate or </div>
<div style="margin-top:14pt;margin-bottom:14pt;margin-left:72pt;">18 cleanse the human body or any part thereof; and
</div>
</span></font></span></font>
<blockquote>The use of, “and is” rather than, <span lang="en-US"><font color="black" face="Tahoma" size="2"><span style="font-size:10pt;" dir="ltr"><font face="Times New Roman" size="2"><span style="font-size:16px;">"including those"
</span></font></span></font></span>in line 17 seems to me to exclude beads that are added for visual appeal. Roughly ten percent of the plastic microbeads found in wastewater effluent are round and colored and were likely added for visual appeal rather than
to exfoliate or cleanse.<font color="black" face="Tahoma" size="2"><span style="font-size:10pt;" dir="ltr"><font face="Times New Roman" size="2"><span style="font-size:16px;"></span></font></span></font>
<br>
</blockquote>
I want to take this opportunity to correct inaccurate statements I made in a NACWA microbead blog post and TPO interview on microbeads. Since very large quantities of microplastics (microbeads + small pieces of other plastic products) are found in POTW effluent,
I incorrectly assumed that most microplastics were passing through our plants. That made sense to me since they are very small and have densities close to that of water. However, a few studies have found that POTW's actually capture approximately 95% of
the microplastics that enter the treatment system. High effluent numbers + high capture efficiency = very, very high influent quantities! The new federal ban will be a tremendous help.
<br>
<br>
<div style="font-family:Tahoma; font-size:13px">
<div style="font-family:Tahoma; font-size:13px"><font><span style="font-size:" lang="en-US">
<div>Ed Gottlieb<br>
Chair, Coalition for Safe Medication Disposal<br>
</div>
<div>Industrial Pretreatment Coordinator</div>
<div>Ithaca Area Wastewater Treatment Facility<br>
525 3<font face="Times New Roman" size="3"><sup>rd</sup></font> Street</div>
<div>Ithaca, NY 14850</div>
<div>(607) 273-8381</div>
<div>fax: (607) 273-8433</div>
</span></font></div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="font-family: Times New Roman; color: #000000; font-size: 16px">
<hr tabindex="-1">
<div style="direction: ltr;" id="divRpF467807"><font color="#000000" face="Tahoma" size="2"><b>From:</b> pharmwaste-bounces@lists.dep.state.fl.us [pharmwaste-bounces@lists.dep.state.fl.us] on behalf of DeBiasi, Deborah (DEQ) [Deborah.DeBiasi@deq.virginia.gov]<br>
<b>Sent:</b> Monday, January 04, 2016 11:23 AM<br>
<b>To:</b> (pharmwaste@lists.dep.state.fl.us)<br>
<b>Subject:</b> [Pharmwaste] Microbead ban signed by President Obama<br>
</font><br>
</div>
<div></div>
<div>
<div class="WordSection1">
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://cnnphilippines.com/lifestyle/2016/01/02/miccrobead-ban-signed-by-us-president-barack-obama.html" target="_blank">http://cnnphilippines.com/lifestyle/2016/01/02/miccrobead-ban-signed-by-us-president-barack-obama.html</a></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"> </p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><b><span style="font-size:18.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Microbead ban signed by President Obama
</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">By Jareen Imam, CNN
</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Updated 15:19 PM PHT Sat, January 2, 2016</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><img id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image001.png@01D146E2.55528680" alt="http://cnnphilippines.com/incoming/atbi1w-Microbeads_CNNPH.png/alternates/FREE_768/Microbeads_CNNPH.png" border="0" height="461" width="768"></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The tiny plastic microbeads found in your exfoliating shower gel are now outlawed in the United States.</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><b><span style="font-size:13.5pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Highlights
</span></b></p>
<ul type="disc">
<li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">President Obama signs a bill banning an ingredient in exfoliating shower gels</span></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Microbeads are tiny particles of plastic that do not dissolve</span></li></ul>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">(CNN) —</span></b><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""> Say goodbye to your exfoliating shower gel.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Those tiny plastic microbeads you have been rubbing on your face are now outlawed in the United States.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">President
<a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/12/28/statement-press-secretary-hr-1321-s-2425" target="_blank">
Obama</a> signed a bipartisan bill that prohibits selling and distributing products containing microbeads. The bill is intended to
<a href="https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/114/hr1321" target="_blank">protect the nation's waterways</a>.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">A microbead is any solid plastic particle that is less than 5 millimeters and is used for the purpose of exfoliating or cleansing, according to the bill.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">These tiny plastic beads have become ubiquitous in hundreds of products ranging from
<a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2015/09/19/us/8-trillion-microbeads-pollute-water-daily-irpt/" target="_blank">
body scrubs to toothpastes</a>. They provide an exfoliating sensation for users and are designed to wash down drains.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">But because they are made of plastic, microbeads do not dissolve and may pose a threat to the environment.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In September, a study published in
<a href="http://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1021/acs.est.5b03909" target="_blank">
Environmental Science & Technology</a> reported that more than 8 trillion microbeads were entering the country's aquatic habitats daily. The volume was enough to coat the surface of 300 tennis courts every day.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Microbeads have contributed to a greater increase in microplastic polluting the planet's oceans and lakes, researchers say.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Not only are they hard to clean up because they are about the size of a pinhead, researchers say they are also posing a threat to aquatic life.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Some marine life mistake small plastic as food particles. Scientists are researching whether microplastics affect the health of marine life once ingested and
if chemicals transfer to humans who eat those species later, according to the <a href="http://marinedebris.noaa.gov/types-and-sources-solutions/states-consider-plastic-microbead-bans" target="_blank">
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration</a>.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">This story was first published on CNN.com, "<a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2015/12/30/health/obama-bans-microbeads/index.html?sr=fbCNN123115obama-bans-microbeads/0926PMStoryLink&linkId=20021370" target="_blank">Microbead
ban signed by President Obama</a>."</span></i><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; color:#0000CC"></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; color:#0000CC"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; color:#000099">Deborah L. DeBiasi<br>
<b>Email: <a href="mailto:Deborah.DeBiasi@deq.virginia.gov" target="_blank"><span style="color:#000099">Deborah.DeBiasi@deq.virginia.gov</span></a><i><br>
</i></b>WEB site address: <a href="http://www.deq.virginia.gov/" target="_blank">
<span style="color:#000099">www.deq.virginia.gov</span></a><br>
Virginia Department of Environmental Quality<br>
Office of Water Permits <br>
Industrial Pretreatment/Whole Effluent Toxicity (WET) Program<br>
PPCPs, EDCs, and Microconstituents</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; color:#000099"><a href="http://www.deq.virginia.gov/Programs/Water/PermittingCompliance/PollutionDischargeElimination/Microconstituents.aspx" target="_blank"><span style="color:#000099">http://www.deq.virginia.gov/Programs/Water/PermittingCompliance/PollutionDischargeElimination/Microconstituents.aspx</span></a></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; color:#000099">Mail: P.O. Box 1105, Richmond, VA 23218<br>
Location: 629 E. Main Street, Richmond, VA 23219<br>
PH: 804-698-4028 FAX: 804-698-4032</span><span style="font-size:9.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; color:navy"></span></p>
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