We’re all well aware of plastic pollution from plastic bags and bottles and other big items. But did you know that microscopic bits of plastic are also polluting the world’s oceans and ending up in the fish we eat?
According to a study published this month in the American Chemical Society’s Environmental Science & Technology, bits of polyester and acrylic smaller than the head of a pin are likely rinsing off garments during the wash cycle of washing machines and ending up on shorelines. Researchers say this debris contains potentially harmful ingredients that fish can ingest and then transfer to people who eat them.
More than 1,900 fibers can rinse off a single garment.
USA Today: Washing machines cause microplastic pollution
The solution, of course, is to wear and wash organic cotton, linen, silk, wool and hemp. These fibers are biodegradable and break down in the environment, rather than accumulating in living organisms. See Debra’s List: Textiles.
