Wipe out wipes: The needless destruction of our oceans by the beauty industry

Pollution caused by ’fatbergs’ and microbeads is just one aspect of the needless and ugly destruction of our oceans by the beauty industry, writes Carolyn Moore.

YOU’RE meticulous about recycling, never without reusable shopping bags, and mindful of unnecessary packaging. But have you ever stopped to question the environmental impact of what’s inside that packaging?

Growing awareness about ‘microbeads’ — tiny plastic beads added to thousands of personal care products — is alerting consumers to a form of pollution which many of us were unwittingly contributing. Simply taking a shower, we could potentially be adding thousands of particles to the soup of plastic waste accumulating in our oceans.