The House is scheduled to vote this afternoon on legislation to ban plastic microbeads from soaps, body washes, and other bath products.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee passed the bill last month in an effort to protect the nation’s lakes and streams from piling up with little pieces of plastic.
Because the beads, which are often used to exfoliate the skin, are less than five millimeters in size they bypass water filtration systems and end up in bodies of water where they are mistaken as food by fish and other wildlife.
The House committee approved a technical amendment to clarify that toothpaste is considered a rinse-off cosmetic that’s covered under the bill, which has 36 co-sponsors including five Republicans.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee passed the bill last month in an effort to protect the nation’s lakes and streams from piling up with little pieces of plastic.
Because the beads, which are often used to exfoliate the skin, are less than five millimeters in size they bypass water filtration systems and end up in bodies of water where they are mistaken as food by fish and other wildlife.
The House committee approved a technical amendment to clarify that toothpaste is considered a rinse-off cosmetic that’s covered under the bill, which has 36 co-sponsors including five Republicans.