3 companies commit to removing plastic beads from their body products

[deepblue]

3 companies commit to removing plastic beads from their body products (http://www.treehugger.com/clean-water/3-companies-commit-removing-plastic-beads-their-body-products.html)

This is great news. I already don't use products with plastic beads, but considering how many people do and probably didn't even know they were in there... this is good.

[Theobromine]

GAH! I just bought a Neutrogena face scrub that probably has that shit in it and I didn't even think about that :mad: Argh and I call myself eco-conscious

[AniaR]

A lot of people don't know about nurdles! (I think that's the official term for them?)

[ShyMer]

I had no idea this was a thing. Why did people think this was an okay thing to do? At least some of these companies are making better choices now.

[Mermaid Momo]

Glad they're doing that! I never knew there were plastic beads in face washes (I always thought that the little beads dissolved and water). I think I'll still stick with my all natural face and body washes though.

[Echidna]

omg, horrible!
I didn't even know those existed!

As for a solution; there are some tiny fish robots in testing, which have a high AI.
They swim around freely and locate micro trash, then "eat it".
Once they're full, they send out a radio signal to be emptied.

If they could use those (in great numbers) in lakes and the ocean, it'd be a good use for technology for once.

[Mermaid Lorelei]

As for a solution; there are some tiny fish robots in testing, which have a high AI.
They swim around freely and locate micro trash, then "eat it".
Once they're full, they send out a radio signal to be emptied.

If they could use those (in great numbers) in lakes and the ocean, it'd be a good use for technology for once.

... as long as they don't end up eaten themselves...

[Echidna]

hm.
I think they had devised a plan for that.
They are indigestible anyway, so maybe they just come out again after a while :p

[AptaMer]

There's an interview here ( http://lookingoodgirl.com/skincare-nurdle-knowledge/ ) that explains the issue very well, I think.

[Blondie]

This is interesting. I sadly do like the beads within the products because I enjoy the scrub. Plus I feel like it cleans your face better. But I never thought they were plastic. I thought they would dissolve as they went down the drain.

But....

http://0-media-cdn.foolz.us/ffuuka/board/sp/thumb/1339/63/1339634094236s.jpg

When you wash your body with these products, the water goes to a waste water treatment facility. Here it is strained through multiple times through different filters before the water is released again. So... Wouldn't this get most of, if not all of the plastic beads?

[deepblue]

No- their size and the way they partially breakdown reduces them to a size too small for filtration, which is why they end up in Lake Erie and the ocean and all sorts of other places, absorbing toxins as they go, and then are eaten by animals who are then poisoned by them.

The whole problem with these nurdles (the name of which is far more amusing than what they do) is that they can't be filtered out before they end up in water systems.

Dr. Marcus Eriksen, The 5 Gyres’ Institute (http://5gyres.org) Co-founder and Research Director, said this can lead to humans ingesting plastics. He also says the following:


"These microplastics absorb pollutants, are eaten by organisms, and enter the food chain, potentially affecting human health."

"They are too tiny for water treatment plants to filter, so they wash down the drain and into the Great Lakes. The biggest worry: fish such as yellow perch or turtles and seagulls think of them as dinner. If fish or birds eat the inert beads, the material can deprive them of nutrients from real food or get lodged in their stomachs or intestines, blocking digestive systems."

Of course, for those of us no near the Great Lakes, they end up in whatever body of water our towns and cities are near.

[SeaGlass Siren]

I'm sitting on top of one of the great lakes :|

[Blondie]

Interesting! I didn't know. Just thought I'd throw it out there xD Thanks for the information!

[Capt Nemo]

Like scrubbing action, wash your face with Lava soap. At least the pumice can be filtered out!

[Anahita]

This is why I make and use my own traditional style face wash. At least then I know EVERYTHING that's in it, and while there's some weird things in there you wouldn't think to put on your face, there's definitely no nurdles.

[Lucinda]

For those who want to avoid products with microplastics, here's a list of words to be on the lookout for:

• Microspheres
• micro-beads
• balls
• beads
• spherulites
• spherules
• polymer spheres
• microcrystals
• granules

Source: plastriot.se (http://plastriot.se) (Via Finlands natur) (http://nom.webbhuset.fi/vi_publicerar/var_tidning__finlands_natur/article-21320-28894-den-osynliga-plasten)