Those tiny scrubbing beads used in face wash and other cosmetics may soon be banned in the US. Great Lakes environmentalists have been concerned about their presence for years citing, among other concerns, fish confusing the plastic beads for food. The Microbead-Free Waters Act of 2015 has bipartisan support including from Illinois Senator Mark Kirk, and seeks to “prohibit the sale or distribution of cosmetics containing synthetic plastic microbeads” by January of 2018. Sherri Mason is an associate professor of chemistry at the State University of New York, Fredonia and has been studying this issue. She joins us to discuss the environmental impact of microbeads.