TLDR: All of them. But some are more harmful than others.
Every textile item sheds fibres to some degree and increasingly these fibres are showing up in our oceans. They come from all sorts of sources but research shows our home laundry is a major contributing factor.
What is a microfibre?
A microfibre is a type of microplastic, which is a plastic particle 5mm or below in size.
Microplastics also come from:
- Plastic bottles
- Microbeads facial scrub or washes
- Car tyre abrasion
A microfibre is typically defined as a plastic based thread, thinner than a human hair. They’re released from our clothing, carpets, curtains, essentially any fabric.
Why are microfibres ending up in the ocean?
Every time you wash your clothes they shed tiny fibres into the wastewater system. Most are removed during water treatment (90% at best) but a large amount still makes its way to our oceans.
On average every year 533 million microfibres (135g) are released per household in Canada and the U.S.. Which at the end of the cycle results in the equivalent of 10 blue whales worth of microfibres entering our oceans, rivers and lakes every year. These microfibres can make their way up the food chain and into our bodies. As Friends of the Earth appropriately questioned, are we eating our clothes??
Canada and the U.S. and discharged to the aquatic environment via wastewater treatment plants.
Source: Oceanwise
Why is it a problem that microfibres end up in the ocean?
Animals can mistake microfibres for food and eat them. Instances of microplastics being found in fish and marine mammals have been reported globally. According to Peter Ross of Oceanwise, this can lead to suffocation and blocking of gastrointestinal tracts for marine life.
“Microfibres have been found in air, rivers, soil, drinking water, beer and table salt.”
Microfibres: the plastic in our clothes
These fibres, although small, can absorb high amounts of toxic chemicals, which make their way back into the food chain, first through marine animals but eventually making their way up to humans. Microfibres have been found in blue mussels, honey, table salt and beer. So we really are eating our clothes. Great.
Which fabrics release the most fibres?
In general, polyester fleece is the biggest culprit in the fibre shedding game. That big, warm fuzzy jacket you love, try not to wash it. Natural materials like cotton and wool also shed. It’s thought that since these fibres are biodegradable, they pose less of a threat than synthetic fibres that don’t decompose. However, studies have found little difference in the rate of degradation between cotton and polyester. In addition, cotton can often be polluted by pesticides and herbicides. On top of all that, indigo dye from denim jeans (made from cotton) have been found in the remote arctic. This is not a drill people.
| Synthetic fabric | Natural fabric |
| Polyester Nylon Viscose Rayon Polyacrylic | Linen Cotton Wool Silk Hemp |
The type of material isn’t the only thing impacting the amount of microfibre shedding. Factors like textile construction, yarn type, mechanical treatment and chemical finish also account for differences.
Fabrics made from “eco friendly” synthetic materials still shed microfibres that end up in our waterways. If these materials are intended to be biodegradable, most will require specific conditions to break down and won’t if they end up in the ocean.
What can we do to help?
The science is still pretty new on microplastics and microfibres so it’s difficult to form comprehensive prevention systems. More research needs to be done to determine things like, which fabric produces the least amount of microfibres and how does this compare to other areas of the clothing lifecycle in terms of environmental impact.
But there are some things we can do as consumers to reduce our impact and normalize conscientiousness in this area.
- Wash your clothes less
- Wash a full load to reduce friction between clothes
- Handle synthetic clothing with care
- Use a laundry ball or bag when washing
- Wash your clothes at a cooler temperature
- Wash with a liquid detergent.
- Using a detergent powder can cause more abrasion in fabrics leading to more shedding
- Air dry instead of tumble dry
- Buy higher quality clothes less often
- Clothing releases the most amount of microfibres in the first few washes. The more fast fashion you buy, the more new clothing you’re washing. Buying higher quality clothing, ideally second hand, that you can keep for longer will help reduce your impact.
The Bailey Rating
Disclaimer: This post is intended to serve as a log of my rambling opinions and tracker of information gathered on a topic. I aim to present accurate, well researched information, citing facts presented to the best of my ability. However, some information may prove to be inaccurate and I encourage you to do your own research on the topic. I’m always open to hearing new information or perspectives on topics posted and aim to keep this post accurate with updated information once discovered or presented to me. Feel free to comment below if you have anything to add 🙂
Header photo by Karolina Ostrzolek from Pexels
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