SUSTAINABLE LIVING

The hidden environmental villain in your home 

REduce waste

Well, well, well, who would’ve thought your dirty socks were a secret environmental menace?  Whilst we do our best to reduce plastic in our household and environment, one lingering household culprit continues to contribute to the largest volume of microplastic pollution than any other appliance. Yes, I’m looking at you, washing machine.

Did you know your daily laundry load can contain millions of microplastics that end up in our waterways through accumulated pieces of textile and fabric, called lint?

The majority of our clothes today are made of synthetic materials derived from crude oil, natural gas or coal, such as *cough, cough* polyester, acrylic and nylon. Through wear and tear, our clothes shed these synthetic fibres, especially when they are tossed around in the laundry drum. Some of this lint dissolves in the water and drains into the sewerage pipe bypassing the machine’s filter.

Someone looking at microplastics through a magnifying glass

Whilst some microplastics are removed during the wastewater treatment process, the miniscule size and the lack of specific filtering technology at treatment plants allow them to enter marine and freshwater environments after processing. Unfortunately this means, washing synthetic clothes (like your favourite exercise tights) is the biggest global source of microplastic pollution, contributing 35%.  In fact, 60% of microplastics found in freshwater are the artificial fibres from laundry lint. Microplastics that do get filtered in the sewerage sludge at the treatment plants can then be recycled for biofertiliser and then are once again, reintroduced into the environment.

What’s so bad about microplastics?

If you didn’t know microplastics are causing chaos, then you must’ve been living under a rock, however at this point that rock probably has microplastics all over it!  Aquatic animals tend to mistake these synthetic microfibres for food and end up with a range of health issues and sometimes starve. This also means that your Friday night fish and chips are highly likely to be littered with these bad boys. Seafood is not the only source of protein in which you will find these plastic fibres, a 2024 study showed 88% of protein food samples all had contamination present including pork, beef, chicken and tofu.

Water with floating particles

Whilst the research on the effects that microplastics have on human health is still evolving and unclear, we do know there are serious, emerging concerns. Some chemicals that leach from plastics are considered endocrine disrupting chemicals, i.e. they may mimic or interfere with the body’s hormones (not ideal). Microplastics also act as a taxi service through our body, for other contaminants like metals and microorganisms (very cheeky).

What can you do?

So now we know life in plastic, is not so fantastic, how do we stop a task as innocent as doing a load of washing, from becoming our planet’s biggest environmental and health burden?

Bust out the linen

Opt for natural fabrics like wool, linen, bamboo or cotton.  These natural materials do tend to still shed fibres when being washed however, microbes in the water know how to digest them.

Get a washing bag or install a filter

Popping your washing into a washing bag before a laundry load will either prevent microfibre loss at the source and/ or filter the microfibres before the water drains away. Similarly, if your laundry machine doesn’t already have one, a microplastics filter can be retrofitted to the outside of your washing machine. The collected residual plastic can then be popped into your general waste.

Guppybag

Fibres tend to break off easier with higher temperature cycles and also when there is more friction at higher speeds. It has been found that 30°C is sufficient for washing all textiles and higher temperatures are usually not necessary for a good clean. Select “gentle washes” on your machine’s settings, skip the spin cycle and reduce the rotation per minute (psssst…your clothes and their colours will also last longer).

Whilst we aren’t suggesting you always skip washing your smelly, sweaty socks, chances are the clothes you’ve been sitting in all day can maybe get another wear before going through the wash. This means less opportunity for the plastic microfibres to escape down your drain and into our waterways.

Tumble drying can also cause microfibers to break off from clothes. Instead, opt for air drying when possible. It’s more energy-efficient, better for your clothes, and helps minimise microplastic release.

washing line

Washing full loads instead of partial loads reduces release of microfibers because garments are exposed to less friction during the wash cycle. Hot tip: front loaders are more gentle on your clothes than a top loader.

full washing machine

Want to tackle this *tiny* plastic problem? The good news is that you don’t necessarily have to do something drastic to cut the plastic from your weekly chore: buy a filter bag, change your wash settings, wear natural materials and simply wash and tumble dry less. Make the switch from laundry lint villain to laundry lint victor one load at a time.

The author
Misty Tucker

Misty is part of the Brisbane Sustainability Agency’s Natural Environment team and is dedicated to thriving sustainable communities and ecosystems. In her downtime, you’ll find her enjoying nature by cycling (slowly) on a bike that’s held together by hope and a bit of rust.

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