Page 40 - Plastics News February 2018

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

New Zealand researcher calls for California pushes for caps to be

ban on plastics glitter tethered to plastic bottles

New Zealand scientist wants plastics ome environmental groups and
A glitter banned to protect marine Slegislators in California want the
species.Trisia Farrelly, an environmental same thing for plastic bottles: They're
anthropologist at Massey University in pushing for a law that mandates caps be
Palmerston, said there are alternatives tethered or attached to bottles.
to the PET-based glitter. Her research is You might call it a "tether in their
based on the findings of toxicologists and cap." The goals are to cut back on cap
endocrinologists."There is a growing body of evidence to litter that becomes marine pollution and to capture
suggest toxins released by microplastics and additional the caps for recycling.By some estimates, cap waste is
prevalent. Beach cleanup surveys since 2014 from Ocean
pollutants absorbed by plastics in aquatic environments Conservancy consistently rank plastic caps the third or
— what some marine scientists refer to as 'poison pills' — fourth most common piece of litter. Of the 6.9 billion
can bioaccumulate up the food chain with the potential plastic bottles opened each day worldwide, fewer
to disrupt the endocrine systems of sea life, and [humans] than 1 billion of those caps ultimately get recycled,
when we consume seafood," Farrelly said.She acknowledged according to a California company in the tethered-
glitter is a "relatively tiny part of the broader problem of closure business. But the idea of requiring tethers
global microplastics" but wants to "raise awareness about faces resistance, at least as a legislative mandate.
environmentally responsible production and consumption The beverage industry argues reliable technology is
not available, and some plastics recyclers worry new
and problems associated with microplastics." "Damage cap designs could unintentionally harm their business.
from microplastics is a serious and extremely complex Others in the industry dispute that and say the
global issue requiring a radical interdisciplinary approach technology is already here.Bottled-water maker Crystal
with natural and social scientists working together to raise Geyser has started using tethered caps on mass-market
awareness with policymakers, health professionals and water bottles in the United States, and one new firm
the public."She says there are plenty of environmentally claims its cap technology is ready and is being rolled
friendly glitter alternatives available, but the onus is on out, mostly in Asia for now. California lawmaker Mark
producer responsibility. Stone, a member of the state Assembly and author of
the legislation, points to how the aluminum can industry
"Why should producers get away with making a profit out changed in the 1970s and 1980s with environmental
of production of single-use disposal plastics, like plastic- benefits.
based glitter, while bearing little to no responsibility for "Industry changed in a way that brought forward a
the environmental damage they cause?" Dr Farrelly points product that kept that pull tab captured, that really
out that it is vital that conversations around plastic-based reduced the amount of that litter going out into the
glitter connect to the broader issues. “It’s the fact that environment," Stone said. "We've proven we can ban
plastic production has increased 20-fold over the last plastic bags, we've talked about microbeads, we've
50 years so a very conservative eight million tonnes of talked about [any] number of things. "It's time that
plastics are estimated to enter the world’s oceans every we worked with a process to ensure that when bottles
year, which eventually break down into microplastics,” come back to the recycler, they come back with the
caps on," he said. Stone's legislation would require that
she says. “It’s estimated that by 2050, 20 per cent of the all plastic bottle caps sold in the state be tethered by
global share of oil consumption will be dedicated to the 2020. It passed an Assembly committee on a 7-3 vote
production of plastic, by which time it is likely we will in early January. But the legislation has since stalled
be seeing more plastic than fish by weight in the world’s because it was unable to advance further by a Jan. 30
oceans.” deadline imposed by California's legislative rules.

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