

Tiny clothing fibers could be the biggest source of plastic in oceans - AndriusWSR
http://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2014/oct/27/toxic-plastic-synthetic-microscopic-oceans-microbeads-microfibers-food-chain

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andor
Some details from the paper (from 2011):

* "Eighteen shores across six continents were contaminated with microplastic"

* 56% polyester, 23% acrylic, 7% polypropylene, 6% polyethylene, 3% polyamid

* More microplastic in densely populated areas (statistically significant)

* At sewage disposal sites, which weren't used for 10 years at the time, the concentration of fibers in the ocean was >2.5 times higher than at control sites. Polyester (78%) and acrylic (22%) made most of the difference.

* Effluent from sewage treatment plants was tested, and contained similar proportions of polyester (67%), acrylic (17%) and polyamide (16%). They state that this suggests fibers at shores and disposal sites are mainly derived from sewer through washing clothes.

* Proportions of fibers used in textiles are: 78% polyester, 9% polyamide, 7% polypropylene, 5% acrylic. Again, these proportions are similar.

* Because people wear more clothes in winter, and wash 7 times as often, they expect more fibers in sewage in winter than in summer, but did so far not test it.

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chuckledog
This is very interesting.

1) makes me think our upcoming Laundry-to-Landscape project will probably use
our sandy front yard soil as a giant lint filter. 2) makes me think twice
before using dryer lint as camp fire tinder. 3) from what I understand, the
fabric industry is running low on ideas for product differentiation at the
high end of the market. Garment lifecycle could be a lucrative differentiator.

