Glitter Banned from Mardi Gras

All that shimmers isn't gold, as Mardi Gras goes for green and bans glitter

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It's as synonymous with Mardi Gras as drag queens and shirtless dancing men, but can the world famous pride parade shine without glitter? We are about to find out, as this year the event organisers have committed to phasing out the sparkly stuff for environmental reasons, as well as banning balloons and single-use plastic water bottles from its major events. Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras chief executive Terese Casu​ said the plan was to make the event completely carbon neutral within five years. "We used to bring in about three tonnes of glitter from China," Ms Casu said. "That goes in the gutter, it ends up in our oceans, our fish eat it, you find it in crab shells and oysters. We must be responsible and make really urgent changes." Glitter is a microplastic (plastic less than five millimetres in length), which causes harm to marine life that mistake it for food. As a result, humans can ingest the microplastics via seafood and even tap water. Balloons also cause major problems, with the attached strings strangling birds, while other animals and sea life often mistake the shape of a burst balloon for jellyfish. ... A key researcher at the University of Sydney's Sydney Environment Institute, associate professor Ruth Barcan​, hopes we're "at a tipping point around plastics and action". "If an organisation like Mardi Gras can say that - an event like that, which is almost the epitome of the synthetic and plastic, if they can do it, that is an extraordinarily potent cultural symbol," Dr Barcan said. For those committed to glitter, there are environmentally friendly glitter options, such as those made from the cellulose of eucalyptus trees. "I'm hoping now we'll set the mark high and take a leadership role in [going carbon neutral] and promote other it at other festivals," Ms Casu said. "Because it does make such a difference and the amount of waste we use at festivals, it's got to stop."

via International Skeptics Forum https://ift.tt/2tyD2Ff