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Tiny pollutants, big changes: Progress in microplastics research and U.S. policy
Summary
This commentary reviewed the current state of U.S. federal policy on microplastic pollution, noting that legislation is largely limited to banning microbeads in personal care products and monitoring plastics in food and water. The authors argued that developing evidence-based national policies will require substantially more research on human health impacts.
Microplastics are ubiquitous in the environment, and their environmental dispersion, ecological impacts, and potential health consequences are a cause for growing concern. In the United States, federal policies addressing microplastic pollution are limited to banning microbeads (a subcategory of microplastics) in personal care products and monitoring microplastics in food and water. While some individual states and cities are taking independent initiatives to combat microplastic pollution, these actions remain relatively scarce. Developing evidence-based policies that protect public health will require further research to understand the impact of microplastics on humans.