One of the biggest problems our world faces today is plastic pollution, primarily microplastics because they’re so small they are spreading like a plague, contaminating every inch of this planet including our food and water. Research has shown that we eat, drink, and breathe in thousands of particles of microplastic every week. On top of that, wildlife and sea creatures are dying from consuming plastic particles thinking they are food.
A subcategory of microplastics are microfibers, which constitute 35% of all microplastic pollution. These microfibers are mostly coming from our clothes. Of all the worlds fiber production, 60% of it is synthetic, meaning made from plastic material. Every time you wash your clothes or sheets, the fabrics release microfibers that are too small to be captured by the machine’s filter.
Once entering our waters, these microfibers attract toxins, pesticides, industrial chemicals and pathogenic bacteria onto their surfaces. Then fish eat these toxic microfibers – and that’s one way in which microplastics enter our food chain – causing severe poisoning, genetic disruption, infertility and diseases in people.
Fortunately, there is finally a way to filter the water from your laundry to stop the microfibers from entering the water supply that ends up in our oceans. A Slovenian start-up called PlanetCare has developed special filters that are specifically designed to catch microfibers that shed from textiles and clothes during washing and drying.
PlanetCare filters efficiency has been tested in several environments to ensure its effectiveness. The results show that between 60% to 80% of all microfibers are caught. The company promises to continue testing and collecting data to improve upon any newly developed filter designs.
The current filters last about 20 washes (for a household of four) before the membrane has to be exchanged with a new one. A PlanetCare filter costs between €35-40, depending on the model of the washing machine and the size of original drain pump filter. The filter membranes cost between €0.80-2.60 depending on ordered quantity. It’s not really expensive to save the world!
At the moment, the company is focusing on end-users, creating a range of add-on filters for existing washing machines, while also negotiating with home appliance manufacturers to install built-in filters. They describe the filter as such: “The central part of the system is microfiltration of water based on electrically charged fibers and membrane nano-technology with a self-cleaning function.”
By simply catching microfibers with this filter, you are contributing to nine of the UN sustainable goals!
Isn’t it nice to know you can do so much good by just filtering your laundry water?
