Microplastics are making the headlines: microplastics in water, in beer, in mussels, in salt or in the air we breathe. Microplastics, that are now found everywhere, until the bottom of the oceans, come from various sources. The accumulation of microplastics in aquatic environments represents a new environmental issue, and its scale and consequences on both the environment and human health are not all known yet. microplastics can be extremely persistent, last for thousands of years and are impossible to remove.
The good news is that action starts to be taken to tackle this source of pollution.
Citizens and politics are more and more concerned about microplastics pollution
European citizens, during Surfrider’s Voice for the Ocean consultation in 2018, have widely expressed the view that the fight against micoplastics should be the European Union’s priority for the preservation of the ocean. How is the EU taking actions? In the context of its Strategy on plastics, the European Union (EU) has started a process to restrict microplastic ingredients, often referred to as microbeads, that are added to products such as cosmetics, but also detergents, paints, industrial products and agricultural fertilizers.
The EU agency leading this process is the European Chemical Agency (ECHA) as the restriction of microplastic ingredients is done in accordance with EU legislation on chemicals (called REACH). ECHA is currently looking at products where microplastics are intentionally added, the risks associated with the use of and release of microplastic ingredients as well as the alternatives available and possible derogations to the restriction.
Surfrider Europe, expert on the topic
Last year, Surfrider Foundation Europe contributed to the efforts led by ECHA to gather information on the impacts of microplastics on environment and human health.
ECHA examined the contributions and had assessed the impacts of a possible restriction on intentionally added microplastics in products of any kind but also the risks posed by intentionally added microplastics. The European agency concluded that an EU-wide restriction would be justified.
The restriction proposal is a first step in the fight against microplastics pollution that accumulate in terrestrial and aquatic environments. If adopted, the restriction could result in a reduction in emissions of microplastics of about 400 thousand tonnes over 20 years.
But we need to stay vigilant and make sure that the restriction proposal won’t be weakened by companies producing or using those type of microplastics ingredients. This year, SFE will contribute to the ongoing public consultation on the scope and importance of the restriction and call for no derogation to the restriction, as alternatives are widely available and already used by a number of businesses. SFE has been very active on this issue for years, within the coalition Beat the Microbead, and has significantly contributed to the adoption of restrictions on the use of microplastic ingredients in rinse-off cosmetics in France. Other countries in Europe (e.g. Denmark, Sweden, United Kingdom) have also banned microplastic ingredients in certain types of cosmetics, it is now time to broaden this restriction to other products and all over Europe.
The next European Commission and European Parliament, that will enter into function following the European elections in May, should also make one of their priorities to address other sources of microplastic pollution, such as pellets and microfibres from synthetic clothing.
