Senators agree more research is needed to understand how microplastics affect human health, but they’re split on what actions should be done in the meantime.
During a joint hearing Tuesday of two Environment and Public Works subcommittees, Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) urged lawmakers to move “with caution.”
“We have to be careful that we’re not getting ahead of, as we would say, the science and burden these municipalities that are trying to meet today’s regulations,” said Mullin, ranking member of the Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice and Regulatory Oversight Subcommittee.
Tiny plastic particles, which often shed from larger plastic materials, have been detected everywhere from remote corners of the ocean to human blood.
