Each tumble dryer is releasing at least 120m of micro plastic fibre into the air each year, a new study has revealed.
This makes the appliances one of the leading sources of microfibre pollution.
This is according to “essential” research by Prof Kenneth Leung, director of the State Key Laboratory of Marine Pollution, and department of chemistry at City University of Hong Kong. The study was published in Environmental Science & Technology Letters.
“Once we know the source, we can begin to control it using simple methods,” said Leung, saying he hopes his finding will ““raise the alarm and trigger more innovation.”
Leung has already invented one such method, designing a small filter using 3D printing that prevents the microplastics being expelled from tumble dryers.
“These effectively remove most of the microfibres from the laundry. [But] if people just put these in the dustbin, some of the fibres will be released back into the air,” he warns.
“We suggest the particles should be collected in a bag.”
