Microbeads ban forthcoming, federal government says

Canada is one micro-step closer to a federal ban onmicrobeads.

The Conservative government said Thursdayit is proposing toaddmicrobeads to the list of toxic substances under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

Microbeadsare the tiny, plastic pellets that aremost commonly found inskincare and exfoliationproducts.

• Microplastics at 'alarming levels' in Canadian lakes and rivers
• Plastic microbeads: small bits with a big impact

In a news release, Labour and Status of Women Minister Kellie Leitch, on behalf of Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq, said the governmentis also working on developing regulations that would prohibit the manufacture, import, sale and offers for sale of products that containmicrobeads.

According to the release, the government will conduct "asurvey of industry stakeholders" to gather information that's needed in order to support the proposed regulations.

The announcement comes just ahead of the expected start to the official campaign for the upcoming federal election.

It also comes four months after the NDP passed a unanimous motion in the House of Commons calling for the government to "takeimmediate measures to add microbeads to the list of toxic substances" under CEPA.

Companies, U.S., ahead on bans

Microbeads are not harmful when used directly, but issues arise once they are washed down the drain. They are so small that they can make it throughmost water treatment plants that don't have filter systems designed to catch minuscule particles.

The plastic fragments then maketheirway into lakes, rivers and streams, where they can beingested by water-dwelling organisms such as fish. Aside from harming fish, they could also end up in the food chain and affect human health.

The tiny plastic pellets contribute to major plastic pollution in lakes and other bodies of water.

A 2014 study of the U.S. Great Lakes by the 5 Gyres Institute found an average of 43,000 microplastic particles per square kilometre. Near cities, the number jumped to 466,000.

Loblaw is one company that hasalready announced thatit will voluntarily stop making products withmicrobeadsby 2018. Large multinationals such as Unilever, Johnson & Johnson and the Body Shop have alsoannounced their intent to stop using microbeads.

South of the border, a few states have banned themoutright.

In the United States, Illinois becamethe first jurisdiction in the worldlast summer to pass legislation that would ban the manufacture and sale ofmicrobeads by 2018 and 2019 within its borders. The state ofNewJersey quickly followed suit in the fall of 2014, andWisconsin became the third state to do so on July 1.