Figure source: Pixabay

From tiny plankton to massive whales, microplastics have been found throughout the ocean food chain. One major source of this pollution are fibers shed while laundering synthetic fabrics. Although many studies show microfibers are released during machine washing, it’s been less clear how hand washing contributes. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Environmental Science & Technology Water report that hand washing can drastically cut the amount of fibers shed compared with using a machine.

When clothing made from plastic fibers, such as polyester and nylon, are laundered, the fabric sheds microscopic fibers that eventually end up in wastewater and the environment. Though researchers have investigated the amount and types of microplastic fibers shed while laundering clothing, most studies have focused on washing machines. In many countries, however, it is still common to manually launder clothing. A team has previously reported on the effects of washing fabric by hand, but the study was not comprehensive. So, Wang, Zhao, Xing and colleagues wanted to systematically investigate microplastic fiber release from synthetic textiles with different methods of hand washing in contrast to machine washing.

The team cleaned two types of fabric swatches made from 100