Dear Mr. Shay and Ms. Kennedy,
Mounting evidence suggests that the polyethylene and polypropylene plastic microbeads found in personal care products ultimately have a pernicious effect on aquatic life, water quality, and public health. As the primary trade associations representing the largest retailers in the United States, you are in a unique position to decrease the availability and use of products that contain microbeads. Therefore, we urge you to push your members to discontinue the sale of products that contain microbeads from companies that have not made a commitment to phase out the use of these particles.
Recently, Southern Connecticut State University researchers found the first evidence of microbeads in Long Island Sound, which serves as both a regional natural treasure and an invaluable economic resource in the Northeast region. This development confirmed what was long believed--that Long Island Sound is not safe from the estimated eight trillion microbeads that flow into the aquatic habitat in the United States each day.
Due to their tiny size, microbeads often cannot be successfully removed from wastewater streams by municipal sewage plants. Just one personal care product can contain hundreds of thousands of these beads, which typically do not biodegrade, as they require high heat processing to break down. As these particles pass from a consumer's sink through wastewater plants and into nearby lakes, rivers, and oceans, they can permanently threaten aquatic life and enter the food chain.
The Connecticut General Assembly has already taken action to protect Connecticut's waterways and Long Island Sound by passing legislation to ban the sale of products that contain microbeads by 2017. Unilever, a multi-national corporation whose U.S. headquarters are based in Connecticut, has pledged to completely phase out microbeads from all of their products by 2015. Johnson & Johnson and L'Oreal have also begun voluntarily eliminating the use of microbeads in their products. We urge you to follow the lead of these institutions by wielding your influence to curb the availability of these harmful products in U.S. stores.