The fashion industry is facing serious challenges that will reshape the system in the years to come. Being sustainable is no longer an option, but a must. Changes must affect all processes and everyone involved. Some are already on the way trying to solve pressing issues, others are just turning appearances green, while there are still some effects that aren’t even part of the agenda yet. Microfibers (a subset of microplastics) come in that last drawer, which, no matter how small, is still a negligible matter.
“Microfibers are already everywhere,” says the just-released report from the NGO Forum for the Future, Tackling Microfibers at Source. “They are in our food, in our water and even in the air we breathe. It is worrying that the latest research suggests they are harmful to human and marine health, even though the extent of their impact is not yet fully understood,” reads the publication, which was made with the support of UNDP, the United Nations Development Agency , created Ocean Innovation Challenge. Fashion must live up to its responsibilities: It is estimated that 35% of all microplastics that end up in the oceans come from textile microfibers.
No one is spared from being part of this problem. Every garment sheds microfibers before it’s even made. For example, in fabric manufacturing processes, it is common to use multiple wash cycles that gradually release these particles, which continue to be released until after purchase each time the consumer washes the garments. Not even natural fibers are spared: although microplastics make one think of man-made materials such as polyester, the NGO reminds us that natural fibers also release microfibers that can be just as harmful when they accumulate in the environment, especially when they are natural substances acts exposed to the same chemical processes as artificial ones. Which one is worse? “Cotton and polyester are two of the most popular materials today (in 2021, polyester accounted for 54% of global fabric production and cotton for 22%). Industry is very interested in comparing what contaminates these two materials. While it is necessary to understand how each contributes to the problem, simplistic comparisons are risky and distract from looking for real solutions to address the problem. In total. It would be like comparing apples to pears.”
There is a lot for both consumers and producers to do: “We estimate that the textile manufacturing phase (before consumption) releases 1.2 million tonnes of microfibers into the environment annually, a similar magnitude to the consumer use phase (washing)” This means that for every 500 shirts produced, microfibers are released with a volume equivalent to that of a full shirt.
Solutions for the home require changed consumer habits. There are more and more washing machines with filters that prevent these microfibers from getting into the water, but there are also simpler systems. Guppyfriend bags minimize the impact of each wash by simply tucking the garments inside. But changing global behaviors isn’t easy, which is why campaigners have long called for governments to get involved. They call for improvements in regulation, for example in wastewater treatment systems (a demand from all sorts of activists) or in the technical requirements of washing machines. France already regulates in this sense and two years ago it passed a law that stipulates that from 2025 these household appliances must contain a filter.
For every 500 t-shirts made, microfibers are released with a volume equivalent to that of a full t-shirt.
It becomes even more complex when integrating suppliers. After 21 months of work, Forum for the future has published a guide that can help the industry get started. The main difficulties are the same as with other problems: improving technological processes is expensive, and nobody wants to take on these costs. “The ecosystem is huge. A normal fashion brand can have between 1,000 and 2,000 different suppliers.” Some suppliers, who in many cases will only adopt a new technology if it is profitable, “that is, if everyone in the chain is willing to bear the costs”. The publication points out some basic starting points, such as: B. installing robust wastewater treatment systems, and points out the most polluting processes: all those involving the use of hot water, for example in many of the toned ones.
More research and awareness of the microfiber problem is needed, but “neither brands nor manufacturers can solve it alone; With this work, we enable a broad approach to address it and encourage different stakeholders to investigate and understand the complexity of the microfiber challenge.”