Accountability and the Enivornmental Justice Movement
As consumers, We believe we need to live with a mindset of social justice. As human beings sharing a common home, we believe all are called to be stewards and advocates of our resources and neighbors, particularly those living in the margins of our society. We should constantly ask ourselves: Who is benefiting, and who is carrying the burden? The Environmental Justice Movement abides by a set of principles that ask this question. The first of these states: "Environmental Justice affirms the sacredness of Mother Earth, ecological unity and the interdependence of all species, and the right to be free from ecological destruction." The final principle "requires that we, as individuals, make personal and consumer choices to consume as little of Mother Earth's resources and to produce as little waste as possible; and make the conscious decision to challenge and prioritize our lifestyles to ensure the health of the natural world for present and future generations."
We should constantly ask ourselves: Who is benefiting, and who is carrying the burden?
In the case of microbeads, large corporations are the ones benefiting from cheap alternatives to their products, but everyone in the long run carries the burden, including those that manufacture the products containing the microbeads. The plastics are polluting the water that we all need to survive and are damaging vital food sources, as well as sources of specie diversity in our lakes, oceans, rivers, and skies. Microplastics are also not the only threat facing our Great Lakes. The use of Taconite mining and other systems that create toxic waste and runoff are slowly poisoning our fresh water sources. Microbeads become a deadly weapon when combined with such potent chemicals. The use of microbeads has become a worldwide commodity that we as consumers can very much eliminate from our daily routines. We as consumers should also look at different organizations with a critical eye and hold these producers accountable for their actions.
We propose that the corporations that were using the microbeads not only remove them from their products, but also take responsibility by funding improved wastewater filtration systems and finding other removal methods for the Great Lakes. It is quite clear that the voices and votes of consumers have the power to produce change. According to Rochman’s research journal, the "ban the bead" movement has been catching the public eye. Multinational companies such as: Unilever, The Body Shop, IKEA, Target Corporation, L’Oreal, Colgate/Palmolive, Procter & Gamble, and Johnson & Johnson pledged to stop using microbeads in their “rinse-off personal care products”.¹ When we speak out against the abuses of our environment and our neighbors, change is bound to happen, even if change moves in inches.
1. Rochman, Chelsea M., Sara M. Kross, Jonathan B. Armstrong, Michael T. Bogan, Emily S. Darling, Stephanie J. Green, Ashley R. Smyth, and Diogo Veríssimo. "Scientific Evidence Supports a Ban on Microbeads." Environmental Science & Technology Environ. Sci. Technol. 49, no. 18 (September 2015): 10759-0761. Accessed April 20, 2016. doi:10.1021/acs.est.5b03909.
