Pressure Points
Understanding
Microplastics
Microplastics are very small plastic particles that typically
come from the breakdown of larger pieces of
plastic, especially when those larger plastic pieces are
exposed to environmental conditions or have been designed and
manufactured for specific applications.1 There are a number
of unanswered questions about microplastics, including their environmental
impact and risk to human health. Regardless of their
potential impacts, companies do not want their products contributing
to the growing amount of microplastics being detected in
the environment.
Our dependence on plastic has grown significantly (since
Dustin Hoffman’s timeless scene in 1967’s The Graduate2) and is
used in a wide variety of products, including overcaps and actuator
buttons in aerosols and virtually every part of a pump spray.
Plastics offer many functional benefits, such as strength, weight,
and moldability, but, most importantly, plastics are cost-effective
and often easily recyclable.
Most plastics are derived from petroleum, either directly as
virgin resins or secondarily as recycled content. While most
plastics are recyclable, there can be challenges in processing some
plastic products. For instance, it can be challenging to separate
multi-layer resin packages and, in some cases, the recycling process
can degrade the quality of the resin. Additionally, not all recycling
systems are equal and some may not be equipped to handle different
types of plastic.
Since the cost of virgin resin is significantly lower than recycled
resin, industry has continued to produce more and more plastic.
However, increasing the production of virgin resin has resulted
in more microplastics. The U.S., along with many other countries,
has not made the proper investment in waste disposal and
recycling programs to handle this amount of plastic. As a result,
the U.S. was exporting waste to China, as well as other Asian
countries. However, in 2017, China banned most plastic waste imports,
which has significantly strained the waste disposal systems
in the U.S.
Addressing our waste problem further highlights the need to
monitor microplastics, which can be transported though the biosphere
and enter sediment, waterways, organisms and potentially
humans. Our scientific knowledge of their toxicity and impact on
human health and the environment is currently limited. Despite
the limited data, government and regulatory agencies continue
to push microplastics policies. In an effort to increase scientific
knowledge, countries and organizations around the world are
studying the presence and potential impact of microplastics.
The European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) proposed to restrict
the use of intentionally added microplastic particles in all consumer
and professional use products,3 following the European
Commission’s request to investigate the need for such a restriction.
The Science Advice for Policy by European Academics (SAPEA)
published a report4 in January 2019 that claims the best available
evidence suggests that microplastics do not pose a widespread risk
to humans or the environment, except in small pockets. However,
SAPEA did warn that the risk could change if pollution continues
at its current rate.
The World Health Organization (WHO) published a study in
2019 on microplastics in water,5 concluding that the quantity and
quality of data on microplastics in different types of water (marine
water, fresh water, tap water and bottled water) is limited. The
WHO highlighted a number of data gaps where further research
is needed, but specifically emphasized the need to develop standard
methods for measuring microplastic particles in water.
In Canada, Health Canada and Environment & Climate
Change Canada published6 a draft science assessment of plastic
pollution, which identified data gaps to guide future research and
informs the decision-making on plastic pollution in Canada.
In the U.S., the California State Water Resources Control
Board (SWRCB) is required to adopt a definition for microplastics
in drinking water by July 1, 2020, and a standard methodology
for testing drinking water for microplastics, including monitoring
and reporting requirements, by July 1, 2021. HCPA submitted
comments7 to SWRCB, requesting (among other things) that it
be flexible with its initial definition of microplastics and consider
modifying it as the science and our understanding of microplastics
evolves. SWRCB must proceed as directed by the laws passed
by the State’s legislature; however, more science is needed to support
any policy efforts. While society may want to push forward
in developing a consensus position on microplastics, we need the
science to inform what issues or risks microplastics pose, if any.
Part of determining the risk of microplastics is understanding
the exposure, which begins with monitoring. There have been
10 Spray July 2020
NICHOLAS GEORGES
HCPA VP of Scientific
& International Affairs
ngeorges@thehcpa.org
Continued on page 26
“I want to say one word to you. Just one word. Plastics.”
Embassy Pictures/United Artists