OtherReef research: Some concern

Microplastics (plastic microbeads)

Solid plastic particles used for texture. Named in some reef rules and flagged by marine-protection guidance. Our checker flags the common plastic polymers by name; many other synthetic polymers are not microplastics.

No law we track restricts Microplastics (plastic microbeads).

Where it’s restricted

No location we track restricts Microplastics (plastic microbeads).

Why it’s regulated

The EU restricts synthetic polymer microparticles in REACH Annex XVII as entry 78, set by Commission Regulation (EU) 2023/2055 of 25 September 2023. The restriction bans placing these microparticles on the market at 0.01% by weight or more where they are present to confer a sought-after characteristic. Rinse-off products are covered from 17 October 2027 and leave-on products from 17 October 2029, and the Commission estimated a cumulative emission reduction of approximately 500,000 tonnes of microplastics over 20 years.

What the reef research says

Hall et al. (2015) report for the first time that reef-building corals ingest microplastics, and they found microplastics in reef water near inshore reefs on the Great Barrier Reef. In feeding trials, corals consumed up to about 50 micrograms of plastic per square centimetre per hour, at rates similar to their intake of plankton and Artemia nauplii. The ingested particles stayed in the coral gut cavity wrapped in tissue, and the authors suggest high concentrations could impair coral health. Plankton tows near inshore reefs found microplastics at low concentrations at every sampling location, and the particles resembled those used in marine paints and fishing floats. Napper et al. (2015) studied polyethylene microbeads taken from several cosmetic exfoliants, estimated that 4,594 to 94,500 could be released in a single use, and called such exfoliants a potentially important, yet preventable, source of marine microplastic.