How does doing the laundry cause pollution?
According to a 2011 study from ecologist Mark Browne, in an average wash, 1900 fibers come off a single synthetic piece of clothing such as polyester, acrylic and nylon. What’s scary is that these tiny plastic fibers — aka microplastics — are released into waterways around the globe. In his paper, Browne wrote that microplastic was found on every site he visited. That’s 18 coasts on six continents, from the earth’s poles to the equator.
As the Guardian reports from Browne’s study, 85 percent of man-made material found on coastlines were microfibers. Unsuspecting marine animals are also eating these synthetic particles, which means it can possibly enter the food chain.
“We found that these particles of plastic can transfer, once they have been ingested they can transfer from their gut to their circulatory system i.e. into their blood and accumulate in their blood cells and they are still there months later,” Browne said in an interview. “So our major concern is that there could be infiltration of this material into the food chain and so we really need to understand how much is in the environment and whether or not animals in the food chain have been affected.”
So that’s how innocently washing our clothes can cause pollution — and this is clearly a big problem.
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However, unlike the prominent fight to ban cosmetic microbeads, getting clothing and appliance companies to help stop the shedding of microplastics has been an uphill climb.
According to the Guardian, since his study, Browne has asked to partner with popular outdoor apparel companies such as Patagonia, Nike and Polartec to research ways to improve their textile design so it won’t shed as many plastic fibers. Unfortunately, besides women’s clothing brand Eileen Fisher, no other company has offered to support him in his research. Browne has also reached out to washing machine manufactures such as Siemens, Dyson and LG to discuss developing filters that can stop microfibers from reaching water, but no answer either.
So if these industries don’t listen, how can we fix this? Don’t buy synthetic fibers such as nylons or fleece. For the ones you already own, try not to wash it as often or choose gentler washing settings. Also stick with natural fibers such as wool, cotton, hemp or silk which break down but don’t harm the environment.
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Tag: clothes
Watch What Happens When a Famous Musician Joins Forces With an Eco-Friendly Yarn Maker
Singer, songwriter, and music producer Pharrell Williams has been in the public eye a lot lately, from dancing alongside scantily-clad women in Robin Thicke’s “Blurred Lines” video to lighting up social media with chatter about the unusual hats he wore to the Grammys and the Academy Awards. But now, he’s making fashion news for a completely different reason: Williams is collaborating with clothing maker G-Star RAW and Bionic Yarn, (a company that makes yarn from recycled plastic), to make jeans from ocean debris.
In an interview with Brian Clark Howard of National Geographic, Williams said of his environmental collaboration, “I am not a fanatic or a hard-core activist. I’m not the guy with the picket sign or the guy who lays down on tracks, but I commend them for their conviction. I have a lot to be thankful for, all of the cool things that have happened in my life. We have to give back in some shape and form and that’s giving back to the Earth. I’ve been lucky enough to be given this collaboration and my message to people is you don’t have to do anything. But if you don’t want to let it go, then what Bionic is doing with the oceans is right for you.”
Bionic Yarn works with marine debris organizations to acquire plastic bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (or PET) collected from coastlines. If the plastic has broken down after bobbing in the ocean for a long time, they blend it with land-based recycled bottles to ensure the material for their fabric is consistent.
The collection will be available at G-Star Raw stores and online starting August 15. By then, there will probably be a new Pharrell Williams hit saturating the airwaves, reminding everyone to check out these ocean-cleaning threads.
MORE: This Ambitious Project Could Change What We Know About Oceans
Happy Oceans! Happy Life! G-Star Raw and Bionic Yarn partner up with Parley for the Oceans. from parleyfortheoceans on Vimeo.
This Father-Daughter Duo Ingeniously Solved a Major Problem at Marathons
If you’ve ever stuck around at the end of the marathon, the race route looks like a graveyard of discarded hoodies, hats, gloves and long-sleeve shirts. It’s not unusual for anyone who runs for 26.2 miles under the beating sun to shed some layers, but if the owners don’t come back for their clothes, it’s a big problem. When Michael Resnic and his 9-year-old daughter Madeline noticed this at the 2007 Philadelphia marathon, they came up with something simple yet brilliant—they collected the discarded clothes and donated them to a homeless shelter.
Inspired by their experience, the father-daughter team started their Philly-based nonprofit called Clothes-Pin (Clothes for People in Need) and have since shown up at 12 to 15 races a year, including ones in Washington D.C., Atlantic City, Baltimore, Bethlehem, Pa. and San Francisco.
According to the Clothes-Pin site, the Resnics and their team of volunteers have collected more than 100,000 discarded items including hats, gloves, hoodies, sweatpants and shirts, and thousands of pairs of sneakers. Now 16 and a high school sophomore, Madi recently told MNN, “It’s not like I’m someone special. I’m just like anyone else who saw something and decided to do something about it. Everyone has that power.”
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This Grandmother Is Helping People with Down Syndrome Gain Confidence
There’s nothing like good clothes to inspire self-confidence. Karen Bowersox has witnessed this first-hand. As the founder of Downs Designs, a burgeoning business that creates garments tailored specifically for individuals with Down syndrome, the 65-year-old has seen the transformative effect that a pair of well-fitting pants can have on her customers. And most importantly, she sees how these clothes have positively affected her 9-year-old granddaughter, Maggie, who was born with Down syndrome. “When [people with Down syndrome] are forced to wear clothes from everyday stores, the clothing makes them look different. All you see is the Down syndrome,” Bowersox told The Huffington Post. “When they wear our pants and they fit and they look and feel more comfortable, they can be confident in themselves. You don’t see the Down syndrome anymore.”
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In 2010, Bowersox’s daughter, Michelle, lamented to her about how difficult it was to find clothes that fit Maggie. Bowersox went online, searching for garments that were created specifically with people with Downs. She came up empty-handed. Even though Bowersox had no experience in clothes, she couldn’t get this new business idea out of her head. So she hired a young designer named Jillian Jankovsky, and together they started Downs Designs. The company now offers 18 styles of jeans for men, women, teens and children, as well as long- and short-sleeved shirts, shorts and capris. The products are available to order using the company’s special sizing method, which they’ve dubbed “Down Sizing”. They also offer a try-on service to ensure that the clothes fit perfectly, as well as custom hemming for jeans. But what really makes the company stand out is their superior service. Bowersox personally calls every customer to review their orders, and if the products aren’t perfect, they can be easily returned, no questions asked. For her, Downs Designs is more than a business. It’s a labor of love.
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