by The 49th district of California is represented by US Representative Mike Levin, who this month submitted a bill to address microfibre pollution.
The Fighting Fibers Act, which was presented to the House on July 24, would require the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency to mandate that new washing machines have microfiber filtering systems.
Such a criterion does not exist at the moment. When microfibers are removed from garments during laundry cycles and carried away with the wastewater, they can contaminate water.
Our food supply, waterways, and oceans are all seriously threatened by microfibers, which can also enter our bodies and cause major health issues. Health and safety depend on keeping them out of our ecosystems, Levin stated in a press statement.
Senator Jeff Merkley, a Democrat from Oregon, introduced a similar piece of legislation in the Senate. The Fighting Fibers Act, which Merkley initially introduced in 2024, did not advance during the congressional session.
Most of us have been taught the three Rs: reduce, reuse, and recycle when it comes to plastics. According to a statement from Merkley, the three Bs—buried, burned, and borne out to sea—are the grim truth as harmful chemicals contaminate our soil, air, and water.
The Fighting Fibers Act is a straightforward solution to assist consumers in addressing the pollution from their clothing that is fueling our worldwide plastics catastrophe. Microplastic contamination is detrimental to both human health and the environment.
According to a Washington State University study, an average American family releases 533 million plastic fibers into wastewater annually from laundry.
The most prevalent kind of microplastics contaminating the ocean are microfibers, according to Anja Brandon, head of plastic policy at the Ocean Conservancy, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ocean conservation and education.
Brandon stated that the bicameral law is a sensible solution to the situation and that urgent, extensive action is needed.
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The most prevalent kind of microplastic contamination in our oceans and surroundings are microfibers, which have found their way into everything from our bloodstreams to our drinking water. According to her, adding microfiber filters to washing machines is a practical and affordable way to handle the situation, which requires quick attention due to its scope and severity.
When microfibers are consumed by organisms, they can cause harm to wildlife. Wildlife is harmed by the toxins and obstructions that microfibers frequently contain, which were introduced to the garment during the manufacturing process.
By halting microfibers in washing cycles before they can reach our bodies and seas, this bill offers a straightforward, focused remedy that mitigates the negative effects of microfibers on the environment and human health. “I am grateful to Sen. Merkley for his collaboration on this bill, and I am eager to see it move forward through the legislative process,” Levin stated.
