How Your Clothes Are Poisoning The Oceans & 10 Ways to Reduce Your Impact
Washing your clothes seems completely harmless & unrelated to pollution but it actually accounts for 35% of ocean plastic.
It’s been estimated that 35% of the worlds ocean plastic actually comes from clothing. We all know single-use plastic bottles are bad, so why is it that we aren’t aware the impact that our clothing has? Even though it accounts for over a third of the problem.
Just as the topic of conversation seems to have been almost invisible, so is the problem itself: Microfibres. Plastic microfibres are the result of synthetic materials breaking down over time. Synthetic materials are those which are not made of natural materials, something like cotton or silk, but instead are generally made of plastic. The plastic is made into a thread which is then used to make fabrics like polyester and acrylic. These materials are then used to make garments, and are usually found in most fast fashion and athletic clothing items and is said to account for 60% of the global fashion industry.
Something we tend to forget, or just aren’t aware of, is that polyester is made from petroleum.
