Speakers yesterday demanded government ban on plastic particle microbeads in a bid to preserve the environment and protect marine life in the Bay of Bengal.

Microbeads are being used in personal care goods like facial scrubs and toothpastes. These reach the bay and are posing health hazard to marine species and humans, they said at a consultation.

They also urged the government to formulate necessary laws in this regard to preserve the environment.

Environment and Social Development Organisation (ESDO) arranged the consultation on “Microplastic Pollution in the Bay of Bengal” at a city hotel.

According to an ESDO finding, Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet cities respectively release 6628.46 billions, 1087.18 billions, and 212.38 billions microbeads each month.

These microbeads are dumped into water bodies and they end up in the Bay as those are too small to be retained by sewage treatment plants, said Afrida Nazibah, a programme associate at ESDO.

As a result, fishes mistake them for food and consume them. These fishes are later consumed by humans, she added.

Microbeads can cause heart disease, type-2 diabetes, cancer, and obesity in humans, a consultation paper said.

“Microbeads are reaching to the ocean and harming marine life. We all are concerned about carbon footprint but we have to think about plastic footprint as well,” said Syed Marghub Murshed, chairperson of ESDO, urging the need for an inter-ministerial effort.

Md Abul Hashem, Chairman (Chemical Division), Bangladesh Standard and Testing Institute, action will be taken if complaint is filed against the use of microplastic.

Ziaul Haque, Director, Department of Environment, said collection of organic and non-organic waste separately will be helpful to reduce environmental pollution caused by plastic particles.

Meanwhile, Jasim Uddin, president, Bangladesh Plastic Goods Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said 5,000 plastic producing factories are operational in the country at present but he claimed they do not produce any microbead.

“They do not produce microbeads,” he claimed adding 70 percent of the used plastics are recycled in the country at present.