Microbeads a major problem in L.A. River
sources: Wikipedia
Polyethylene (left) and polypropylene (right) are definitely as complex as the above drawings suggest. Also revealing that these two compounds are in a lot of hygiene and personal care products. As I read the article, it reminded me of being in the Grand Canyon–the reservation part–last summer and the importance of using biodegradable soap. One wouldn’t realize that there are oil-derived products in body washes. My naive self thought it was just soap. However, time to rethink that, especially when the sewage treatment plants don’t pick everything up, and rain just turns the Los Angeles River (and others) into an unholy mess. With California’s current drought at the level it is (e.g., it hasn’t rained in the southern part of the state at all in January 2014), I’m just hoping that the next rain is on the weekend. Unless you have to work, one has no business going out the next time it rains. The micro-beads in our hygiene products really do live up to their name. The fact they capture micro-plastics that are larger in size than 10 microns (1/100 millimeter), in the water reclamation plant is an eye opener. There are most likely micro-plastics smaller than 10 microns that get away, which only serve to enlarge the fact they are the items that absorb toxins that negatively impact the aquatic ecosystem. easy to forget the smaller the fauna, the smaller the flora they eat. Easier to mistake a micro-bead as food. One to think about.
jamesgrossjr 