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Michigan State Rep Introduces Bill To Double Up Ban On Microbeads

Microbeads
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A new bill in the state Legislature would ban the manufacturing and sale of personal care products with microbeads.  But, as Cheyna Roth reports, the small plastic beads are already banned in some products at the federal level.

Democratic Representative Laurie Pohutsky says it’s important for Michigan’s waterways that microbeads are kept out.  That’s because when they’re in products, and washed down the drain, they can get into lakes and rivers.

“Their purpose is not as important as the risk that they’re posing by just creating an exorbitant amount of plastic waste that’s just being sent down the drain.”

Pohutsky says Michigan can’t just rely on the federal ban.  She says that’s because the federal government could reverse the prohibition.  Pohutsky’s bill is also a little stricter than the federal ban.

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—Cheyna Roth is a reporter for the Michigan Public Radio network.  Contact WEMU News at734.487.3363 or email us at studio@wemu.org

Before becoming the newest Capitol reporter for the Michigan Public Radio Network, Cheyna Roth was an attorney. She spent her days fighting it out in court as an assistant prosecuting attorney for Ionia County. Eventually, Cheyna took her investigative and interview skills and moved on to journalism. She got her masters at Michigan State University and was a documentary filmmaker, podcaster, and freelance writer before finding her home with NPR. Very soon after joining MPRN, Cheyna started covering the 2016 presidential election, chasing after Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, and all their surrogates as they duked it out for Michigan. Cheyna also focuses on the Legislature and criminal justice issues for MPRN. Cheyna is obsessively curious, a passionate storyteller, and an occasional backpacker. Follow her on Twitter at @Cheyna_R
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