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Microplastics, as the name suggests, are tiny pieces of plastic that are less than 5mm in length. They can come off of items like clothing, plastic products and even the trash that we dispose of polluting our soil, air and even water. So, the next question is, ‘what can we do about it?’
As a society that heavily relies on plastic, we are reaping the negative impact. As durable as the material is, it is almost too durable when it comes to disposal. Take for instance the lifecycle of a plastic water bottle. It’s estimated that worldwide we use 1,000,000 plastic bottles per minute. With countries like the U.S recycling less than 25% of those bottles, that means that billions of plastic waste is tossed into our landfills yearly. And, it’s estimated that the type of plastic used to make the standard water bottle can take up to 450 years to fully decompose. Yet, this plastic waste isn’t merely sitting in ever-increasing landfills. It’s slowly breaking off into tiny shards of plastic that contaminate everything from our soil to our water sources.
That fact that these pieces of plastic are so small is part of the reason why they wind up in our rivers and oceans. As you can imagine this is a big problem not only for the animals that live there, but also for us as well. Marine life often mistakes microplastics ocean waste for food. Some of these are the fish that we eat, like salmon, transferring this plastic onto our plates and into our bodies. Other times microplastics are floating in the drinks that we enjoy like beer or milk. If you haven’t guessed by now, we are truly living in a plastic world. And, as a material derived from fossil fuels and made with chemicals it remains to be seen what the negative impact is as microplastisc accumulates in our bodies.
Yet, before we become too dire focusing on the problems with microplastics ocean waste, there are simple changes we can make to help minimize these tiny shards of plastic. With a few tweaks to our lifestyle we can not only help to minimize plastic consumption, but also microplastic waste as well.
Don’t Rely On Single-Use Plastic Items
Our use of single-use plastic items are a big part of the microplastic problem. As mentioned before 1,000,000 plastic bottles are purchased every minute. When it comes to other single-use items like plastic bags, worldwide we use 4 trillion every year and recycle less than 5% of them.
So, imagine how much plastic could be saved if we simply invest in reusable items. When it comes to water bottles, there are reusable options made from more sustainable materials like bamboo and steel. For shopping, there are cotton totes made to be carried and reused for months or years to come. At home you can minimize your plastic use a little further by switching from plastic wrappers to reusable ones made from beeswax or cloth bags instead of using plastic ziplock ones. These are all simple sustainable swaps and easy changes that can help to minimize the use and waste of plastic and microplastics as well.
Avoid Synthetic Clothing
One area that isn’t looked at too closely when it comes to microplastics is the fashion industry. But do you know that most of our clothing is made from plastic? Synthetic man-made materials like polyester, nylon and spandex are all plastic-based fibers made from crude oil. So, that means that with every wear, wash and disposal there’s a potential for these fibers to release microplastics.
Instead of bypassing the material tag on your next shopping trip, try to pay close attention to the materials that your clothes are made of. Avoid buying items that are synthetic (and plastic) like polyester and nylon and choose natural fabrics like cotton, linen, wool, hemp, or silk. These fibers are natural, biodegradable and don’t carry the threat of turning into microplastics ocean pollution.
Change How You Do Laundry
As previously mentioned, your polyester puffer coat or dress are releasing microplastics when you wear and wash them. Some experts estimate that a single load of laundry can release a few thousand to 10 million plastic fibers.
If you’re looking for ways to make your fashionable lifestyle more sustainable rethink how you do laundry. Buy fewer clothes and wash them less often when you can. When you do wash try to reduce the water volume which is estimated to release 30% fewer microplastics into the ocean. Also try using a microfiber ball that will collect fibers from your clothing in the wash. That way you can collect and safely recycle microplastic waste before it goes from your washer machine to the ocean.
Getting Going With Public Transport
We know that carpooling and riding public transport are good habits to minimize greenhouse gases and air pollution. But, did you know that these sustainable habits can also minimize microplastic pollution as well? That’s because nearly 200,000 tons of microplastics from tires make their way into our oceans each and every year.
If you live in an urban area there might be more than one option for you to get around other than using your car. Try taking the train, bus or trolley. Or, get moving and walk where you can. By limiting the number of cars on the road we can minimize tire erosion and microplastic waste that is hurting our environment.
Being sustainable is all about making simple lifestyle changes. These solutions are easy to implement into our everyday life, but they make a big impact. With pollution like microplastics threatening our environment, wildlife and our own personal health, they’re small impacts on our daily lives that can make a big impact for a better world in the long run.