Synthetic clothing wash a stain on the Arctic

Polyester fibres account for more than half the microplastic pollution in the Arctic Ocean, according to a study that reveals how washing synthetic clothing is contaminating the remotest seas.

Scientists took samples throughout the ocean, including at the North Pole, and found an average of 40 plastic particles of 5mm or less per cubic metre of seawater. Synthetic fibres made up 92 per cent of the microplastic pollution, of which 73 per cent was polyester, resembling fibres used in textiles.

Previous research has found that washing a single item of synthetic clothing in a normal washing machine can release millions of microfibres into drains. Polyester fleeces have one of the highest rates of fibre loss.

Once in the ocean microfibres can be eaten by marine animals, which mistake them for food, and end up being eaten by humans. A study found that 63 per cent of shrimp in the North Sea contained synthetic fibres.

The study by the Ocean Wise conservation association in Vancouver and the Canadian government’s Institute of Ocean Sciences said the Arctic Ocean had an ‘‘inherent vulnerability’’ to microplastic pollution

The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, reported that the heavy reliance of the indigenous Inuit people on the Arctic Ocean for food underlined the need for better understanding of the extent and impact of microplastic pollution in the marine environment. – The Times