Scientists from the University of Plymouth (Plymouth University, UK) published in the scientific journal "Marine Pollution Bulletin" the results of their study on the dangers of plastic microfibers contained in synthetic clothing.
The researchers washed various synthetic fabrics (polyester, acrylic, cotton-polyester blends) in various combinations with washing powder and fabric softener at temperatures of 30˚C and 40˚C (as happens in washing machines). At the end of each wash, they studied the mass, quantity and size of plastic fibers present in the water using an electron microscope. The results were sad: hundreds of thousands of small synthetic particles remained in the water. For example, an average load of 6 kg of clothing generated: for polyester-cotton - 137,951 fibers, for polyester - 496,030 fibers, for acrylic fabrics - 728,789 fibers.
These plastic fibers are so small that they penetrate existing cleaning filters, entering the seas and oceans, which leads to well-known negative consequences for marine ecosystems: fish and other marine life feed on this type of microplastic, which is risky for their lives and representatives of the further food chain .
Professor Richard Thompson, who heads the marine litter division at the University of Plymouth, has already testified to help ban plastic microbeads in cosmetics in the UK by 2017. Commenting on the new study, he noted that this data alone is not enough to create such a ban on synthetic clothing, since, unlike cosmetics, such products have obvious social benefits. Therefore, the professor believes that a solution must be found by changing the structure of tissues or water filtration systems, or by a combination of these actions.
See also anekdotig:
- News: " U.S. to ban products with plastic microbeads in 2017-2018 " (January 6, 2016)
- News: " By 2050, over 99% of seabirds will eat plastic " (September 1, 2015)
- Newsletter: " Scientists prove for the first time that zooplankton eat microplastics found in the ocean " (July 27, 2015)