Microplastics – cleanrh2o

What is a microplastic?

Microplastic's Sources

Microplastics are tiny pieces of plastic, as the name suggests, that enter and devastate the environment. They are defined to be less than 5 mm (0.2 in) in diameter, and they come from both primary and secondary sources. Primary sources include tires, clothing, and microbeads in cosmetic products. Secondary sources include the degradation of plastic bottles and bags that reach the oceans.

What can I do?

Waste water treatment plants are unable and not required to filter out microfibers released from our laundry due to their extremely small size. The best way to begin to eliminate the problem is by moving to natural clothing and filtering out the microplastics that are emitted with CLEANR’s novel self-cleaning filter.

How are microplastics produced?

Clothing

With every load of laundry, up to 1.5 million plastic microfibers are emitted into our waterways. The fibers are torn from the clothing as they are spun quickly in the washer, similar to how lint is produced from drying clothes. Textile abrasion is a primary source of microplastics, and it contributes to 35% of the problem.

Tires

As you drive your car, the plastic tire slowly degrades from the friction with the road. This can be visually seen as the treads on tires are reduced in size. Tire abrasion is a primary source of microplastics, and it alone makes up 28% of the problem.

Plastic Waste

When plastic bottles and bags reach the ocean, they are broken down into smaller pieces from sunlight and the force of the waves. This is a secondary source of microplastics, making up 37% of the total problem when all sources are combined.

Clothing accounts for half a million metric Tons per year of microplastic reaching our oceans. The equivalent in weight to three billion polyester shirts.

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Phase 1 – Into the water

Every time we wash our clothes, tiny microfibres can end up in our food chain. These microfibres can find their way into oceans causing significant environmental damage.

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Phase 2 – Marine life

Tiny, almost invisible particles, shed from our synthetic clothes and enter our water sources. Water that enters into marine life.

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Phase 3 – Our food

We have created a new washing machine” to say “We have created a new microfiber filter that with each synthetic cycle, helps to stop this microplastic cycle.

Microplastics Problem

The secondary sources of microplastics include bottles, wrappers, and other large
plastics. These plastics enter the environment through litter and poor waste
management. Over time, they gradually degrade into smaller and smaller pieces until
eventually becoming microplastics.