Tiny clothing fibers could be the biggest source of plastic in oceans

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.

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.