Illinois to ban single-use cosmetic and toiletry plastic bottles in hotels to curb microplastic pollution

06 Sep 2024 --- The US state of Illinois will ban hotels from using small, single-use plastic bottles containing personal care products starting next summer.

Governor Pritzker signed the Small Single-Use Plastic Bottle Act into law. The restriction first applies to hotels with 50 or more rooms and by January 2026, all hotels are expected to abide by the law.

The Illinois Environmental Council believes that the new law will have “ripple effects” across sectors including a reduction in the amount of single-use goods purchased, more reusable solutions and commercial innovation. It also hopes to ease the burden on taxpayers if less non-recyclable plastic goes to the nearby municipal waste systems.

Market researcher Ipsos finds that an average of 85% of people polled worldwide support a ban on single-use plastics, and 90% call for a ban on hazardous chemicals used in plastics.

Protecting Great Lakes

The Illinois Environmental Council says 40 million people rely on the state’s lakes for drinking water, so the law promotes the use of creative, reusable solutions while lowering the quantity of plastic waste in them.

The Illinois Environmental Council says 40 million people rely on the state’s lakes for their drinking water.State senator Laura Fine comments, “Illinois is a national leader in protecting the environment. With this new law, the hotel industry will join our efforts. By reducing their footprint and opting for more economical and environmentally-friendly toiletry options, Illinois’ hotel industry will keep thousands of pounds of plastic out of our landfills and waterways over the years.”

Andrea Densham, senior policy advisor for the Alliance for the Great Lakes, commends Governor Pritzker, Senator Fine and the Illinois Legislature:

“This new Illinois law is a big step in the right direction, driving innovation and reducing single-use plastics. We must keep advancing stronger laws to reduce plastic production, fix the broken recycling system, move manufacturers and retailers toward using less unnecessary plastic and shift to reusable alternatives. Now is the time to take the next step by requiring that all washing machines filter out microfibers and banning the use of polystyrene foam containers that pollute our waterways.”

Community support

According to the Illinois Environmental Council, unrecyclable, single-use plastics are “choking the environment,” with more than 22 million pounds of plastic pollution ending up in the Great Lakes every year while breaking down into microplastics.

Ocean Conservancy’s vice president of External Affairs, Jeff Watters,  says, “The Small Single-Use Plastic Bottle Act is exactly what we mean when we say we need upstream solutions. Plastic pollution that ends up in our rivers and the Great Lakes ultimately feeds into the ocean. 

The Illinois native adds: “Tens of millions of visitors stay in Illinois hotels every year, so this bill will significantly reduce plastic production and pollution. We are glad to see Illinois take this critical step and hope that other states will follow suit.”

The Illinois Environmental Council cites research showing “stunningly high” amounts of microplastics that could be harmful to human health were found in all five Great Lakes plus local fish, drinking water, bottled water and beer. 

Its executive director Jen Walling believes the state law is a “success story of how policy advocacy takes individual action to the next level.” 

Meanwhile, State Representative Kam Buckner thanks its partner, the Illinois Environmental Council and its members for their work to reduce single-use plastic pollution. “Today, Illinois takes another step toward protecting people and our environment from the growing dangers associated with single-use and microplastic pollution. I’m excited to continue this critical work together.”

In addition, the Illinois legislature is debating a number of other bills on plastic pollution, including one that would outlaw foam food ware and use washing machine filters to prevent microplastic pollution.

As the personal care industry finds ways of eliminating microplastics to curb pollution, recent research presented a plant solution for this ecological issue.

By Venya Patel