You’re Probably Wearing The World’s Biggest Source Of Microplastic
We’ve all seen the troubling headlines. “Microplastics are raining down from the sky”, or “There’s no getting away from microplastic contamination”. But equally as worrying as the apparent abundance of these particles all over the planet, are the host of ways in which each and every one of us can contribute to their dissemination. Worse still, one of the culprits on this list is a source of microplastic that many people carry around with them all day long.
As research by the University of Plymouth has revealed, if you have synthetic fabrics in your wardrobe, you are contributing to the problem every time you throw the clothes in the washing machine. Of the three fabric types tested, acrylic was found to be the worst offender. When washing a load at 30˚C or 40˚C, there are an estimated 730 thousand fibres released into the waste water system.
Polyester is the next most prolific, adding almost 500 thousand every wash. A polyester-cotton blend is less serious in terms of microplastic impact, but a switch to a 100% cotton garment (other natural fibres are available) is of course the best way to reduce your wardrobe’s ‘microplastic footprint’.
Not only are synthetic fabrics on the list of mircroplastic sources, they’re right at the top. According to a ‘global evaluation of sources’ by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, 35 percent of all microplastics which wind up floating in our oceans come from synthetic textiles.
As the above infographic shows, car tyres are the second biggest source, with 28 percent a consequence of their erosion while driving. The good news there at least, is that we as individuals have some control over both of the top sources — through buying less or no clothes made from synthetic textiles and using the car less frequently.
For the synthetic fabrics we already own though, is there anything that can be done to reduce their impact? The Plastic Pollution Coalition, a project of the non-profit organisation Earth Island Institute, has a list of ‘ways to stop microplastic pollution’. These range from the more obvious — wash less often — to ideas which may not necessarily spring to mind, such as always filling the washing machine to reduce friction between the clothes. A lower spin setting will have the same effect.
The responsibility to make a change is clearly not all on us as consumers, though. The Microfibre Consortium, set up to conduct further research into microfibre pollution, is one example of apparent action being taken by industry. Members include companies such as Adidas, Primark and M&S, and the group has a stated aim to “develop best practice guidance to mitigate microfibre release to the environment”. You can read the terms and conditions for the consortium’s top tier members, here.
