We CAN Stop Plastic Pellet Pollution.

Plastic resin pellets, commonly called “nurdles,” are the raw material of virtually every plastic product. They enter the environment during manufacturing and distribution through leaks, spills, packaging failures, and inadequate containment at transfer points. Once released, they do not biodegrade, accumulating in waterways and oceans where fish and wildlife mistake them for food and are unable to pass them through their digestive tracts, causing malnutrition and starvation.

UltraTech International is committed to stopping these nearly indestructible microplastics at the source, before they ever reach a waterway. Through products engineered to capture and contain these pollutants, UltraTech addresses the problem where it begins: in the facility, at the transfer point, before the damage is done.

Plastic resin pellets travel a long path from producer to processor. Along the way, they pass through railcars, bulk trucks, marine vessels, warehouses, and transloading facilities, each of which represents a potential point of pellet loss. Loading and unloading operations are consistently identified as the highest-risk activity across the entire plastic pellets supply chain.

When plastic pellets leak or spill, rain and wind carry them into gutters, storm drains, and drainage channels that ultimately lead to rivers, streams, and the ocean. Whether pellets are handled at an inland facility or a coastal port, storm drains connect to waterways everywhere.

Every escape pathway can be addressed with the right containment strategy. The solutions exist, but the supply chain has to deploy them.

The impact of plastic pellet pollution extends from marine ecosystems to the workplace floor. Seabirds, turtles, and fish ingest plastic pellets, mistaking them for food. Because pellets often cannot pass through the digestive tracts of these animals, ingestion can lead to malnutrition and starvation. Beyond physical blockage, nurdles also act as concentrators of toxic compounds, adsorbing persistent pollutants from surrounding water and carrying them into the food chain.

Beyond environmental harm, pellet loss carries direct regulatory and business risk. Stormwater discharge regulations at the federal and state levels hold facilities accountable for what leaves their property through drainage systems. Loose pellets on facility floors are also a cause of slips and falls, one of the leading categories of workplace injuries in the plastics industry.

The plastics industry has developed well-established Best Management Practices (BMPs) for preventing resin pellet loss, covering facility layout, equipment standards, employee training, routine inspection, and stormwater management. Operation Clean Sweep®, the industry’s voluntary stewardship program, has codified these practices into a framework now used by thousands of facilities in more than 60 countries.

Effective pellet loss prevention is built on a systematic approach: assess every transfer point, upgrade facilities and equipment where gaps exist, train employees and assign accountability, and follow up with regular inspections. At the storm drain level, screening and filtration are the last and most critical line of defense.