{"id":1852,"date":"2021-01-13T09:00:36","date_gmt":"2021-01-13T08:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.planetcare.org\/?p=1852"},"modified":"2021-10-17T19:37:37","modified_gmt":"2021-10-17T17:37:37","slug":"what-is-microfiber-pollution-and-how-can-we-stop-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.planetcare.org\/de\/what-is-microfiber-pollution-and-how-can-we-stop-it\/","title":{"rendered":"What is Microfiber Pollution and How Can We Stop It"},"content":{"rendered":"

Our synthetic clothes hide a dirty little secret. Each time we wash them, hundreds of thousands of tiny microfibers come off. Without anything to stop them, microfibers then enter water systems, in most cases bypassing cleaning filters and eventually infiltrating every nook and cranny in our oceans, rivers and soil, causing microfiber pollution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Microfibers 101<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

But let\u2019s first take a closer look at the main culprit. Microfibers are tiny - much thinner than a human hair - pieces of plastics that make up synthetic fabrics. Most prevalent are polyester and nylon that are used to produce anything from heavy winter gear, fleece jackets and yoga pants. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These fabrics have been welcomed in closets around the world for a good reason - they are cheap to make, sturdy, and durable. In fact, around 60 percent of our clothing consists of synthetic materials or a mix of natural and synthetic. And not only in garments, synthetic fibers are also used in other textile products that we regularly use \u2013 just think of carpets, curtains, and blankets. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Washing machine party<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When you put your clothes in a washing machine, they never come out the same. As they turn, squeeze and squash, garments shed microfibers \u2013 lots of them. A recent report in Nature magazine<\/a> ballparks the amount anywhere from 640,000 to 1,500,000 microfiber pieces per wash. The smaller number would roughly compare to a surface area of a pack of gum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An average person releases roughly 300 million microfibers per year by doing laundry. The sheer amount of clothes we own (usually more than 100 pieces) puts the textile industry on the top as the single biggest microplastic polluter. Around 35 precent of this microplastic pollution comes from washing synthetic textiles, according to the researchers<\/a> at the International Union for the conservation of nature. See the graphic below for a complete breakdown of the biggest microplastic polluters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

\"Microfiber
Source: international union for conservation of nature<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Meet the super shedder<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Different types of synthetic fabric shed differently. Acrylic fabrics are most generous - around 700,000 fibers are released from an average six kg wash load, one report<\/a> found out (because of different methodologies, numbers of microfibers, released during washing, can vary depending on a study). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blends like cotton & polyester release fewer microfibers than fully polyester-made clothing. Yarns and twists also affect shedding. Tightly woven performance gear might not shed much at all while polyester fleece sweaters can leave millions of fibers in a single load of laundry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

\"Microfiber<\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n

From the Himalayas to the deepest trenches - microfiber pollution!<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Microfibers are very successful at escaping from the sewage systems into the environment. And, boy, they\u2019ve seen places, from the highest peaks of Himalayas to deepest points of the Pacific.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

British scientists<\/a>, for example, captured amphipods, tiny shrimp-like crustaceans that scavenge on the seabed, from six of the world's deepest ocean trenches. They took them to a lab and looked inside the tiny creatures. In 84 percent of the amphipods \u2013 microfibers! The deeper the trench, the more fibers they found. In the Pacific Mariana trench, for example, all of the samples contained microfibers. On a lighter note, the research also provides a glimpse into humanity\u2019s fashion preferences \u2013 two thirds of fibers were colored blue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Microfibers have also been found in the Arctic waters. Guardian<\/a>, for instance, reported that the ocean is \u201cpervasively polluted by microplastic fibres that most likely come from the washing of synthetic clothes by people in Europe and North America\u201d. At this point, you\u2019ll be luckier to find a place where pieces of your clothes haven\u2019t beaten you there first. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

\"Microfiber<\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n

A threat to natural habitats and our health<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How much harm these fibers actually cause and what they mean for human health?  Scientists have only started pulling on threads here, but what we already know is sadly not encouraging. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Microfibers can act as sponges that harmful chemical pollutants, including carcinogenic dyes, can attach to. Once ingested, these chemicals cause gut blockage, injury and changes to oxygen levels. Microfibers can accumulate in the liver and kidneys of lab mice. They\u2019ve been shown to cause starvation and reproductive issues<\/a>. In one experiment<\/a>, for instance, scientists fed crabs with microfiber-contaminated food. They found that the animals soon started to lose their appetite which also reduces energy for growth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Scientists<\/a> also believe that small bits of plastics might carry viruses and bacteria that causes diseases. Startling fact, especially considering that microplastics, often as microfibers, have regularly been found in our food, water and drinks. All the samples in two separate studies of German<\/a> and US<\/a> beer brands, for instance, have been polluted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most of the fish caught in the Northwest Atlantic also had microplastics in their bellies, another report<\/a> found out. Small fish become prey for larger fish that become food for even larger predators, perhaps served on our plates. People who eat European mussels, clams, and oysters, for example, ingest over 11,000 microplastic particles per year, according to the 2014 study<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00bbIngestion of microplastics by marine organisms consumed by humans may pose a public health concern,\u00ab researchers Amanda L. Laverty and Fred C. Dobbs have warned in their research<\/a> on bacteria and microplastics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

\"\"
A picture of a freshwater flea with an ingested microfibers from polyester clothing. The fleas which were exposed to microfibers for 48 hours in the laboratory showed a higher mortality rate.
Source: Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Microfiber apples, anyone?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

But it\u2019s not just the oceans and marine life that suffers. Microfibers are also in the soil where we grow food. Apples have been found<\/a> as most contaminated among fruits and carrots among vegetables. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These plastic particles are a potential risk as they may stunt growth of plants and crops.  In an experiment with wheat, a crop physiologist from Kansas State University, found out that the microfiber presence in the soil \u201ccaused water to pool up on the surface and prevented oxygen from getting to a plant\u2019s roots\u201d. Plastic-treated wheat plants began to yellow and wilt, and \u201cmany plants died in the month-long experiment\u201d, Mary Beth Kirkham said in one of the interviews.<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bottom line is that we need more studies to better understand how microfibers (and microplastics in general) affect human health. At best, we will be not be affected directly, \u201cbut sea life will suffer, which may in turn circle back to affect humans who rely on the sea for food and livelihood\u201d, as the author of this Harvard University article<\/a> points out. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

Wastewater treatment plants do capture microfibers, but\u2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s now look at the possible solutions for microfiber pollution. Wastewater treatment plants first come to mind \u2013 but do they work? Modern facilities can in fact remove a lot of microfibers from the sewage water - anywhere from 60 to 99 percent, according to recent studies<\/a>. You might ask what\u2019s the big fuss, then, if majority microfibers are caught before they enter oceans and rivers? Well, two things (that are also explained more in detail in this blog post<\/a>). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Firstly, new filtering technology is not widely deployed. Many older and smaller treatment plants, on the other hand, are less efficient in removing microfibers or they simply don\u2019t cover all areas. This is true for Europe and North America and is an even greater challenge in developing countries where over 95 percent of the wastewater<\/a> gets dumped without any treatment whatsoever. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And secondly, even if these plastic particles do get caught by the filters, their journey doesn\u2019t just end there. They still get to have an afterlife in the so-called sludge that sewage treatment facilities produce. Sludge is a residual material that is often rich in nutrients but also loaded with pollutants, including microfibers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And where does sewage sludge end up? Some is burned, but most of it finishes in the soil, often as fertilizer replacement. From there, the road to our veggies, fruits, and crops is a very short one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n

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A post shared by PlanetCare Microfiber Filter (@planetcare.solutions)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n