United States: Worn garments that consist of polyester acrylic or nylon fabrics release plastic fiber debris upon washing and dryer usage. A typical laundry cycle produces millions of ultra-fine plastic particles that escape the capacity of existing wastewater cleaning facilities.
These fibers end up in nearby waterways that eventually bring them to the ocean.
Plastic items consumed by marine creatures create further plastic transfers through animal food chains until they reach larger animals and human beings.
All fabrics, including natural materials, produce fiber fragments while releasing environmental chemicals into the water.
However, the most common fiber on Earth is polyester, which shares about two-thirds of worldwide production with synthetic fibers.
Earth Day 2025
The worldwide observance of ‘Earth Day’ occurs on Tuesday when people across the globe search for planet-friendly practices.
Your clothes are shedding bits of plastic. Here’s what people are doing about it this Earth Day https://t.co/EDTzf3cIAj
— Toronto Star (@TorontoStar) April 22, 2025
According to Rachael Z. Miller, founder of Vermont-based Rozalia Project for a Clean Ocean, “Everyone who wears and launders clothing is part of this problem, but everyone who wears and launders clothing can be part of the solutions,” AP News reported.
Working with minimum washing frequencies combined with cold water washing can lower the release of fibers from clothing fabric.
Elisa Tonda at the UN Environment Programme faces greater challenges because sustainable textile manufacturing methods and responsible textile consumption matter most.
Tonda, who leads the resources and markets branch, mentioned that sustainable apparel should include microfiber-reduced designs together with enhanced material quality for durability.
What steps could be taken?
Anja Brandon, who leads the plastics policy division at Ocean Conservancy, recommends washing clothes less frequently because this lowers the amount of friction that causes fiber destruction, as AP News reported.
For #EarthDay2025 we're encouraging everyone to embrace #CircularLiving by sharing @Recycle_Now's appeal for us all to rescue recyclable items from the rubbish bin.
— WRAP (@WRAP_NGO) April 22, 2025
Their recyclable crew is made up of characters representing the top 5 items missed items in our recycling across… pic.twitter.com/BQILC3rJtZ
“They get tumbled and tossed around with a bunch of soaps, really designed to shake things up to get out dirt and stains,” Brandon noted.
The cleaning process involves using a stain stick procedure. The shedding amount of clothes is significantly reduced if washed in full loads of cold water using short cycles, with subsequent drying by hanging.
The Cora Ball represents Miller’s invention, which resembles coral filtration systems and functions as a laundry device to reduce textile collisions during washing.
It also catches microfibers. A washing bag exists as another solution that collects fibers from synthetic fabrics when added during a wash cycle.