Category: End-of-Life

Solutions – End-of-Life (Boosting Consumer Participation)

November 9, 2020

Dear Humans,

Earlier I shed light on how consumers have significant influence in the effectiveness of brands’ attempts to recycle and reuse post-consumption resources in a circular economy. However, there has been a perceived lack of participation despite some of their willingness to contribute to environmental protection. Today, we need to transform intention into action so I have returned to discuss how consumers’ participation can be boosted. 

Firstly, consumers need to be motivated into participating. Monetary incentives could be a form of motivation. For instance each used item returned would earn them points which they could use for their next purchase. Consumers are then “rewarded” for going out of their way and returning their finished products to producers. The incentivisation of participating in a circular economy can address and possibly offset consumers’ perceived inconvenience and negative sentiments towards take-back programmes (European Commission, 2018). Discounts and point systems set in place can also help create a loyalty programme with the consumers which facilitates greater product returnability and retention of customers in the long run. 

Secondly, consumers need to understand why they should participate. As mentioned previously, consumers lack awareness and interest in circular economies (Kirchherr et al. 2018). If consumers do not understand why they should participate, it is less likely for them to be inclined to do so. To raise consumers’ awareness in their role in circular economy, education and exposure is important. Producers or even the government can work together to help educate consumers about the circular economy and its benefits for the environment. For instance, posters can be put up along public transport networks, advertisements on the television or even producers engaging with consumers through the use of social media platforms. The possibilities are endless. Other than producers trying to shove information down consumers’ throats, the latter can try to be open-minded to new ideas and listen to what the producers have to offer. As the saying goes, “it takes 2 hands to clap”, despite information being readily accessible, consumers must also be willing to learn. With greater knowledge and understanding of the take-back programmes, perhaps consumer participation would increase.

Thirdly, the main bulk of resistance from consumers is due to the perceived inconvenience. To facilitate greater convenience, producers can set up monthly collection points in different neighbourhoods. This “doorstep” solution can possibly address the issue of consumers having to go out of the way to the store just to return a finished product. Producers can partner with recycling companies to facilitate the collection. It should be recognised that not everyone will be willing to participate in these take-back programmes. Consumer behaviour change is generational and does not happen overnight. It would take time for some consumers to come around to accept and participate in these initiatives. 

Cooperation between producers and consumers is largely what makes the circular economy successful and both are necessary for the system to work. Therefore it is important for producers to think from a consumer’s perspective and constantly innovate and keep up with changing demographics. Producers to come up with enticing return programmes and consumers to actively return their post-consumption beauty products. Hand in hand, you can reduce the creation of waste and exploitation of more resources. 

Hopeful vibes,

Mother Nature

 

References:

European Commission. (2018, October). Final Report Annexes. Behavioural Study on Consumers’ Engagement in the Circular Economy. https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/ec_circular_economy_final_report_annex.pdf

Kirchherr, J., Piscicelli, L., Bour, R., Kostense-Smit, E., Muller, J., Huibrechtse-Truijens, A., & Hekkert, M. (2018). Barriers to the Circular Economy: Evidence From the European Union (EU). Ecological Economics, 150, 264-272. doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2018.04.028

Ledsham, N. (n.d.). Engaging Consumers to Reduce and Recycle. The Sustainability Institute by ERM. https://www.sustainability.com/thinking/engaging-consumers-to-reduce-and-recycle/

Solutions – End-of-Life (Consumers Participation in Circular Economy)

November 8, 2020

Dear Humans,

As consumers, you hold greater power than you think. Even if producers make their products recyclable and provide take-back programmes, the onus is actually on consumers like you to participate in them. Producers can offer incentives like cash back programmes to encourage consumers to return their finished products but it is up to you to decide whether you want to recycle that empty bottle. Pressure may be placed on producers to create recyclable facilities or start take-back programmes but it should be recognised that consumers are responsible as well. Today I will delve into the issue on consumers’ participation in the circular economy and how it determines its effectiveness to curb end-of-life pollution. The method of consumers returning their finished products to producers and allowing the producers to recycle them produce new products is called a circular economy. 

 

Fig 1: Circular Economy

Fig 1: Circular Economy (Calvo-Porral & Levy-Mangin, 2020)

 

Fig 2: Linear Consumption Model

Fig 2: Linear Consumption Model (Calvo-Porral & Levy-Mangin, 2020)

Unlike the linear consumption model (Fig 2), a circular economy creates a closed-loop system between the producers and consumers (Calvo-Porral & Levy-Mangin, 2020). The circular economy is considered to be more environmentally sustainable than the linear consumption model. In a closed-loop system, producers use post-consumption waste to create new value which promotes the return of waste and minimisation of resource consumption (Tunn et al., 2019). This positively contributes to controlling environmental pollution as it reduces the producers’ need to extract new resources through degrading means like deforestation and burning of fossil fuels for energy. Consumers’ acceptance and participation in circular products is crucial. Research has shown that consumers are willing to support environmentally sustainable products but the real incorporation of these products are lacking (Cronin et al., 2011). Studies found out that consumers are willing to take necessary steps to contribute to environmental protection but on the condition that it is convenient for them (Field, 2020).

Despite knowing that there are options for them to reduce environmental pollution from their products’ end-of-life, consumers’ lack of action render initiatives ineffective. These circular economy and take-back programmes are highly reliant on consumers’ participation to return their used products in order to recycle them. With consumers’ reluctance to participate, the loop system cannot be closed and would lead to a leakage and loss of resources. It is paramount for consumers to know that they have a part in recycling their products to help producers reuse resources. The lack of participation from consumers could also be due to their lack of awareness and interest in circular economies, therefore it is vital to address this issue and help consumers be greener (Kirchherr et al. 2018). In the next post I will go deeper into how consumers’ participation in take-back programmes can be boosted to help recycle used beauty products.

Cool vibes,

Mother Nature

 

References

Calvo-Porral, C., & Lévy-Mangin, J. (2020). The Circular Economy Business Model: Examining Consumers’ Acceptance of Recycled Goods. Administrative Sciences, 10(2), 28. doi:10.3390/admsci10020028

Cronin, J. J., Smith, J. S., Gleim, M. R., Ramirez, E., & Martinez, J. D. (2010). Green marketing strategies: An examination of stakeholders and the opportunities they present. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science,39(1), 158-174. doi:10.1007/s11747-010-0227-0

Field, A. (2020, February 29). Consumers Like Circular Economy Practices—If They’re Not Too Much Of A Hassle. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/annefield/2020/02/29/consumers-like-circular-economy-practices-if-theyre-not-too-much-of-a-hassle/?sh=1e23c12977c4

Kirchherr, J., Piscicelli, L., Bour, R., Kostense-Smit, E., Muller, J., Huibrechtse-Truijens, A., & Hekkert, M. (2018). Barriers to the Circular Economy: Evidence From the European Union (EU). Ecological Economics, 150, 264-272. doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2018.04.028

Tunn, V., Bocken, N., Hende, E. V., & Schoormans, J. (2019). Business models for sustainable consumption in the circular economy: An expert study. Journal of Cleaner Production, 212, 324-333. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.11.290

A Producer’s Perspective: The Gaia Hypothesis

November 7, 2020

Dear Humans, 

 

Have you ever heard of the Gaia Hypothesis? It states that all the spheres of the Earth come together to form a complex system, where it strives to find an optimal environment for contemporary life (Carpenter, 2010). With that being said, it shows that humans depend on nature as much or even more than nature depends on humans. Everything is connected. From the hydrosphere to the atmosphere and biosphere, it is all interlinked with one another. Since you humans require resources from the Earth, why are you harming it? 

 

Producers vision: The Gaia Hypothesis

In the beauty industry, the Gaia Hypothesis comes into good use by providing producers with an aim of the green products they should strive for. As stated earlier, the Gaia hypothesis posits that nature and humans are all connected, hence, protecting the environment would reap benefits for humans as well. A producer should strive for an environmentally friendly production method and ways that help the end-of-life of a product to be sustainable. In order to have a healthy functioning system on Earth, natural ingredients are needed rather than the toxic chemicals that are present in your beauty products today. 

 

Outcome: Zero Waste

If beauty companies are able to adopt the concept of the Gaia Hypothesis, Zero Waste can be achieved. During production, it is crucial that biodegradable materials are used for the packaging. After consumption, the packaging can then be easily recycled, hence allowing a zero-waste situation. This also requires the cooperation of the consumer, but this will be covered in another post. Stay tuned!

 

Successful example of The Gaia Hypothesis: Seed Phytonutrients

In terms of production, their bottles are made from paper where it is 100% from recycled materials (Young, 2019). They partner TerraCycle, where their entire bottle and pump can be recycled. As an additional incentive, they even have an heirloom herb seed hidden in their packaging for consumers. This is to encourage their consumers to support more resilient plant growth across the planet. From production, to end-of-life to giving back to nature. Isn’t it perfect?

(Source: LO’real, 2018)

Producers, I leave you with this. I hope that the Gaia Hypothesis has inspired you to lead your company differently where beauty and nature can be seen as a single entity. 

 

Hopeful vibes,

Mother Nature 

 

References: 

Carpentier, C. L. (2010). The Vanishing Face of Gaia – By James Lovelock. Natural Resources Forum, 34(4), 333-335. doi:10.1111/j.1477-8947.2010.01335.x

L’Oréal. (2018, May 03). Seed Phytonutrients: Farmer Fresh and Seed Obsessed. Retrieved November 10, 2020, from https://www.loreal.com/en/news/brands/seed-phytonutrients-farmer-fresh-and-seed-obsessed/

These Biodegradable Natural Beauty Brands Are Giving Back to the… (n.d.). Retrieved November 10, 2020, from https://pebblemag.com/magazine/living/biodegradable-natural-beauty-brands

 

A Producer’s Perspective: Solutions (End-of-Life of a Product)

November 6, 2020

Dear Humans,

As previously mentioned, producers have been major culprits of pollution in the cosmetic industry. They have vastly exploited the palm oil industry to produce beauty products such as moisturizers and inserted numerous harmful chemicals in your fragrances. These methods of production have caused the beauty industry to contribute to air, marine and land pollution in many ways. Also, when cosmetic waste is discarded in landfills, they seep into the soil and cause other pollution hazards.The end-of-life of a beauty product continues to pollute the environment and it tracks back all the way to the producer. Hence, this post will propose two ways of attempting to solve the issue of the end-of-life pollution caused by a beauty product in the perspective of a producer.

 

 

  1. Take-Back Programmes

 

Take-Back Programmes are programmes for beauty products that allow the customer to return the packaging of a product once they have finished using it. This will give the producer a chance to recycle their product and ensure that it is not thrown away and discarded unethically. To encourage customers to take part in these programmes, companies usually have an incentive or freebies for consumers who do their part. While most companies simply offer to recycle used packaging, some companies even go a step further to send boxes to their houses to get their customers to fill up the boxes and recycle all their products. This would definitely help with the problem of soil pollution where cosmetics

 

TerraCycle 

TerraCycle is an innovative recycling company that works with companies like Kiehl’s and The Body Shop and they strongly encourage their consumers to participate in their take-back programmes. They even have the TerraCycle Zero Waste Box, where they send it to you at a small price and allow you to send back all the products that you want to recycle. From hair gel tubes to lip balm tubes to lotion dispensers, you name it! To know more about what they do, feel free to visit them here https://www.terracycle.com/en-AU/

Figure 1: The Body Shop launching their Take-Back programme (Source: Edie, 2019)

 

2.  Research & Development for Greener products 

In order to take a step forward towards greener production, beauty companies have to take the first step to invest in research and development for greener products. A notable company that has invested in research development is Shiseido from China (Lim, 2020). Shiseido believes that their mission is to create green products and that it is just the right time to start as both producers and consumers are becoming more environmentally conscious. Also, an additional benefit for companies is that many consumers associate greener products with good health which will further spur the support of consumers (Tolnay, Koris, & Magda, 2018). With this trend, iot is beneficial for companies to invest in R&D for greener products in the long-term. This will most definitely help to close the life cycle of a beauty product greener products are usually biodegradable or can be recycled. 

(Source: Shiseido, 2020)

Hence, in order for us to move towards greener products and not contributing to end-of-life waste, producers have to take the first step to initiate take-back programmes and invest in research and development for their beauty products. By stepping forward, it is indeed a good effort towards reducing the negative impact that the end-of-life of beauty products has on the environment.

Chill vibes,

Mother Nature 

 

References:

Lim, A. (2020, April 08). Eco-friendly beauty for China: Shiseido’s new R&D centre to focus on development of green products. Retrieved November 10, 2020, from https://www.cosmeticsdesign-asia.com/Article/2020/04/08/Eco-friendly-beauty-for-China-Shiseido-s-new-R-D-centre-to-focus-on-development-of-green-products

Shiseido Co., L. (n.d.). Research Areas. Retrieved November 10, 2020, from https://corp.shiseido.com/en/rd/development/

The Body Shop launches in-store take-back scheme for plastic packaging. (n.d.). Retrieved November 10, 2020, from https://www.edie.net/news/5/The-Body-Shop-launches-in-store-take-back-scheme-for-plastic-packaging/

Tolnay, A., Koris, A., & Magda, R. (2018). Sustainable Development of Cosmetic Products in the Frame of the Laboratory Market. Visegrad Journal on Bioeconomy and Sustainable Development, 7(2), 62-66. doi:10.2478/vjbsd-2018-0012

 

End-of-Life – Incineration (2)

October 11, 2020

Dear Humans,

Previously I mentioned how incineration as a way of managing beauty product waste can bring about harmful air pollution through the release of toxic emissions during waste combustion. However, studies have shown that incineration can be less environmentally degrading than landfill waste management. So which is the lesser of 2 evils? In one particular study done in the US, landfills can release greater quantities of greenhouse gases, nitrogen oxides, dioxin, hydrocarbons, and non-methane organic compounds (Conserve Energy Future, n.d.). Furthermore, landfills contribute to the contamination of groundwater storage as acids from the decomposition of waste materials seeps into the ground as mentioned previously. Landfills also produce methane gas which is a strong greenhouse gas which would contribute more to environmental degradation. Meanwhile, the biggest issue of incineration of plastic waste is that it produces harmful emissions like dioxins and acid gases which have been kept in control. Air pollution control techniques/devices (APCD) such as Particulate Collectors, Acid Gas Scrubbers, NOx Controls, Carbon Adsorption and Other Dioxin and Mercury Removal Techniques (National Research Council, 2000). 

I will elaborate more on these devices below (National Research Council, 2000):

The Particulate Collectors: Fine-particle control devices fall into 3 general categories: 

  • Filtration collectors → Fabric filters (baghouses)
  • Electrostatic collectors → Dry and wet electrostatic precipitators (ESPs) and ionizing wet scrubbers
  • Wet inertial-impaction collectors → Venturi scrubbers and advanced designs that use flux-force condensation-enhancement techniques

The Acid Gas Scrubbers: Reaction between a scrubbing liquid (either alkaline or water) with the acid gases to neutralise it 

  • A scrubbing liquid is trickled through a matrix of random or structured packings through which the gas is simultaneously passed, resulting in gas-liquid contact over a relatively large surface area. 
  • The scrubbing liquid can be water or an alkaline solution, which reacts with the acid-gas constituents to form neutral salts. 
  • The wastewater discharge from the packed-bed absorber is a salt-water brine that must be managed properly. This effluent may contain unreacted acids, trace organics, metals, and other solids removed from the gas stream.

NOx Controls: Includes combustion-furnace designs, combustion process modifications, or add-on controls

  • Combustion-furnace designs that reduce thermal NOx:
    • Variety of grate and furnace designs, bubbling and circulating fluidized-bed boilers, and boiler designs, especially those with automatic controls, that permit flue-gas recirculation. 
  • Combustion-process modifications that reduce NOx formation include controlling the amount of oxygen available during the combustion process, and operating within a specific temperature range.

Carbon Absorption & Other Dioxin/Mercury Removal: Carbon injection → injection of finely divided activated carbon particles into the flue gas stream ahead of the particulate APCD.

  • The carbon particles adsorb pollutants on their surface, and then the carbon particles are themselves captured in the particulate APCD.

With all these new technologies and designs to incinerators, air pollutants released from burning of beauty waste can be mitigated or reduced. Incineration of beauty product waste (plastic containers etc) can also generate energy for future use, this method is also called “Waste to Energy”. As I mentioned previously, incinerating waste also reduces its volume, making it more land efficient. With all that being said, incineration seems to be the lesser of 2 evils. However, the best way to reduce environmental pollution is for producers to produce greener products that are biodegradable and for consumers to purchase such products.

Hopeful vibes,

Mother Nature

 

References:

Conserve Energy Future. (n.d.) Various Advantages and Disadvantages of Waste Incineration. (2020, July 05). Retrieved 2020, from https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-incineration.php 

National Research Council. (2000). Waste incineration and public health. Washington: National Academy Press. Retrieved 2020, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK233629/pdf/Bookshelf_NBK233629.pdf

End-of-Life – Incineration (II)

October 9, 2020

Dear Humans,

As I have mentioned before, your trail of environmental degradation does not end when you throw away your products. Apart from contaminating soils through landfill disposal, waste disposal through incineration can also bring about harmful air pollution. Incineration is a solid waste disposal method where waste materials are being treated with extremely high temperatures (Conserve Energy Future, n.d.). This method of disposal is often compared to landfill waste disposal. Incinerating waste materials effectively reduces its mass by a drastic 93-96% (Conserve Energy Future, n.d.). Despite its ability to reduce waste volume, burning of waste material can lead to air pollution through the release of harmful pollutants such as greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide & water vapour etc), dioxins, acid gases, nitrogen oxide, heavy metals and particulates which some are mentioned in the video below (Royte, 2019). 

To understand the disadvantages of incinerating waste, you can start this video at 1:55 mark of the video:

The video highlighted that incomplete combustion of waste materials can release dioxins into the atmosphere and they are toxic and are carcinogens. Other than dioxins, particulates are also released into the atmosphere during incineration. The particulate matter found in burned ashes are small tiny particles of less than 10 micrometers that can easily enter a human’s body and cause undesirable health issues such as lung cancer and aggravated asthma (USEPA, n.d.). 

Other effects of particulate matter on the environment would include (USEPA, n.d.):

  • making lakes and streams acidic
  • changing the nutrient balance in coastal waters and large river basins
  • depleting the nutrients in soil
  • damaging sensitive forests and farm crops
  • affecting the diversity of ecosystems

The acid gases like sulfur dioxide and other harmful pollutants in the atmosphere can be carried across a large area quickly by wind. They can then be deposited onto land, oceans, lakes and everything beneath the sky and can be retained for a long period of time. These harmful air pollutants can also enter the food chain system and be trapped in the system for long. Despite incineration’s harmful air pollution, is it better or worse than landfill waste disposal? I will delve into this the next time. 

Calm vibes,

Mother Nature

References:

Conserve Energy Future. (n.d.) Various Advantages and Disadvantages of Waste Incineration. (2020, July 05). Retrieved 2020, from https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/advantages-and-disadvantages-incineration.php 

National Research Council. (2000). Waste incineration and public health. Washington: National Academy Press. Retrieved 2020, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK233629/pdf/Bookshelf_NBK233629.pdf 

Royte, E. (2019, March 15). Is burning plastic waste a good idea? Retrieved November 04, 2020, from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2019/03/should-we-burn-plastic-waste/ 

United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). (2020, April 13). Health and Environmental Effects of Particulate Matter (PM). Retrieved 2020, from https://www.epa.gov/pm-pollution/health-and-environmental-effects-particulate-matter-pm

End-of-Life……or not?

October 7, 2020

Dear Humans, 

Previously, I was warning all of you about the harmful effects caused by soil pollution due to the end-of-life of your beauty products. Many companies have highlighted this issue, and attempted to convert their plastics to bioplastics or biodegradables. Also, campaigns have been used to encourage more people to minimize waste. Hence, today, I will be evaluating the alternative use of bioplastics and biodegradables and introduce a few current methods used to reduce pollution caused by the end-of-life of beauty products. 

Evaluation of the use of bioplastics and biodegradables 

  • Bioplastics

Bioplastics are plant based plastics that are commonly used as an alternative to conventional oil-derived plastics (Gibbens, 2018).  It is deemed as an eco-friendly product as they have a more sustainable mode of production. However, it does not solve the problem of the accumulation of bioplastics in landfills (Cho, 2017). These bioplastics will still remain in the landfills and leach out toxic substances to the surrounding environment. Hence, it may seem like a suitable alternative on paper, but it does not solve the root cause of the problem.

  • Biodegradables 

Many assume that as long as the plastic used is biodegradable, it will dissolve in nature naturally. However, the truth is industrial composting is necessary to heat the bioplastic to a high enough temperature for it to break down (Cho, 2017). Without the heating, these bioplastics will not degrade on their own in a meaningful timeframe. Using a more common example, the University of Plymouth tested plastic  shopping bags which are biodegradable in comparison to conventional polyethylene bags (PlanetCare, 2020). None of the bags deteriorated after three years at sea, soil and the open air. Hence, the solution of just using biodegradable plastics may not be entirely sufficient. 

 

So what is the beauty industry currently doing? 

 

To know more about the beauty industry’s efforts to reduce waste and pollution, watch this video to find out more! Overall, this industry has been focused on producing more recyclable packaging and take-back programmes. This will be elaborated in the ‘How to change’ posts in the next few posts. Till we meet again!

 

Sanguine vibes,

Mother Nature 

 

References: 

Waste in the beauty industry – the plastic pollution problem Beauty, Unspoiled. (2020, April 17). Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://beautyunspoiled.com/waste-in-the-beauty-industry/

Gibbens, S. (2018, November 21). What you need to know about plant-based plastics. Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/2018/11/are-bioplastics-made-from-plants-better-for-environment-ocean-plastic/

13, R., Cho, R., 9, Rlk, Fecht, S., Rick, . . . Sarah. (2018, November 20). The Truth About Bioplastics. Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://blogs.ei.columbia.edu/2017/12/13/the-truth-about-bioplastics/

 

End-of-Life……or not?

October 5, 2020

Dear Humans, 

Before, I shared with all of you about how the consumption and production of beauty products has led to detrimental effects in pollution. But, the most horrifying news is that even as you throw your beauty product away, it continues to pollute the environment. Today, I will be sharing about the pollution caused by the end-of-life of your beauty product. 

In 2008, the cosmetic industry generated about 120.8 billion units of packaging (England, 2010). 40% of the total amount of waste consists of plastic waste, which is not biodegradable. Apart from cosmetics and beauty products, grooming and personal care products also pose a huge environmental headache. 23,000 tonnes of toothbrushes and 2 billion razors end up in the landfill each year (England, 2010). Since these are personal grooming tools that have to be disposed of after a few months, it easily generates a huge amount of waste in the landfills.

(Source, Thompson, 2018)

Why is it so bad? 

The plastics from cosmetic waste accumulated in the landfills will stay and leach toxic substances to the surrounding soil and land. Chlorinated plastic can release very harmful chemicals into the soil (UNEnvironment, n.d.). These chemicals can seep into the groundwater or other surrounding sources, which will harm organisms that drink the water. At the decomposition stage of the plastic, additives such as phthalates and Bisophenol A leach out of the plastic particles (UNEnvironment, n.d.). To make matters worse, these additives can cross highly selective membranes which can trigger gene expression and biochemical reactions. 

Can you recall the post about microbeads and microplastics? When you wash your face with a cleanser or moisturizer, microplastics are washed down together with the water used. These microplastics not only escape to the ocean, but also form a part of your sewage. Sewage serves as an important factor in the distribution of microplastics. Since sewage sludge is often used in fields as fertilizer, tons of microbeads end up in our soils every year. This even affects fauna and organisms negatively. For instance, earthworms build their burrows differently in the presence of microplastics, which affects the fitness of the earthworm and the soil condition (Berlin, 2018). 

 

How does it affect YOU directly? 

You may think, how does this even affect me? So what if the earthworms have a harder time? Now, let me break to you the bad news. There is an increasing amount of microplastics detected in YOUR food due to the accumulation of microplastics in terrestrial ecosystems. They have been detected in incredibly common foods such as salt, sugar and beer (Berlin, 2018). Researchers have speculated that this was due to the widespread reality of accumulation of plastics in the terrestrial environment (Berlin, 2018). 

 

Hence, pollution does not end the moment the beauty product is thrown away. In fact, it contributes to pollution of the environment more than ever. In this post, you’ll realise the detrimental effects caused by the soil pollution by microplastics and how you’re ingesting these harmful chemicals. Want to know the alternatives and how to help minimise waste from beauty products? Stay tuned!

 

Cheery vibes,

Mother Nature 

 

References: 

An underestimated threat: Land-based pollution with microplastics. (2018, February 05). Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/02/180205125728.htm

Thompson, A. (2018, November 12). Solving Microplastic Pollution Means Reducing, Recycling-and Fundamental Rethinking. Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/solving-microplastic-pollution-means-reducing-recycling-mdash-and-fundamental-rethinking1/

UN Environment. (n.d.). Plastic planet: How tiny plastic particles are polluting our soil. Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://www.unenvironment.org/news-and-stories/story/plastic-planet-how-tiny-plastic-particles-are-polluting-our-soil

Wasted beauty: Packaging in the cosmetics industry. (2010, November 16). Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://resource.co/article/Packaging/Wasted_beauty_Packaging_cosmetics_industry