© 2024 | Jefferson Public Radio
Southern Oregon University
1250 Siskiyou Blvd.
Ashland, OR 97520
541.552.6301 | 800.782.6191
a service of Southern Oregon University
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Congress Beats California To A Microbead Ban

Alliance for the Great Lakes

The products that make your teeth smooth and give your skin a healthy glow can have unintended impacts on the environment. 

Some soaps, toothpastes, and other cleaning products contain plastic "microbeads" as mild abrasives. 

But it's okay... they wash down the drain.  Oh, that's the problem... they get through treatment plants and end up in rivers, causing problems for wildlife. 

That's why federal legislation will ban plastic microbeads in 2018, a move applauded by scientist Chelsea Rochmanat the University of California-Davis.  She visits to explain where the microbeads end up, and what kinds of problems they cause.  

 

Stay Connected
Geoffrey Riley is a graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism and has hosted the Jefferson Exchange on JPR since 2009. He's been a broadcaster in the Rogue Valley for more than 35 years, working in both television and radio.