Plastic pollution is known to harm marine life and can enter the human food chain via our food and water. Credit: Will Rose/Greenpeace
The number of tiny plastic pieces polluting the world’s oceans is vastly greater than thought, new research indicates.
The work reveals the highest microplastic pollution yet discovered anywhere in the world in a river near Manchester in the UK. It also shows that the major floods in the area in 2015-16 flushed more than 40bn pieces of microplastic into the sea.
The surge of such a vast amount of microplastic from one small river catchment in a single event led the scientists to conclude that the current estimate for the number of particles in the ocean – five trillion – is a major underestimate.
Microplastics include broken-down plastic waste, synthetic fibres and beads found in personal hygiene products. They are known to harm marine life, which mistake them for food, and can be consumed by humans too via seafood, tap water or other food. The
Besides not wearing any clothes (not recommended), there are 2 solutions that I know of for this. The first one is available now, the other will be soon.
1. Washing machine discharge filter. This is the most effective solution of the two. Here is a link to the product page: http://www.septicsafe.com/filtrol-160-lint-filter-with-1-filter-bag-and-1-replacement-bag-recommended/
2. This is a little ball that you toss into the washing machine that catches some of the fibers. It is much easier to use–nothing to install or service, and it’s better than nothing, but it’s not as effective as the Filtrol unit. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/879498424/cora-ball-microfiber-catching-laundry-ball?ref=nav_search&result=project&term=cora%20ball
Hopefully washing machines in the future will be designed with convenient filters for the discharge water, but until then, it’s up to all of us to do something about this.
We could also use products like I do called: Seventh Generation which at least does not pollute discharge water.