Shedding Plastic, Our Modern Wardrobes Impact on Oceans & Soils

In this episode of Weaving Voices, Rebecca chats with:

• Timnit Kefela, a PhD candidate at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Here are some Highlights:

• Timnit’s Beginning

  • Timnit discusses what influenced her interest in her scientific research into finding ways to take advantage of the connections that already exist in nature to ensure that nutrients are available for plants to survive and to keep us fed.

• Nature as a Learning Tool

  • Timnit points out the importance of keeping an open mindset in scientific research and remembering that you don’t know better than the natural world.

• Microfiber Plastic Emissions

  • Timnit explains that the first step in convincing stakeholders and policy makers that microfiber emissions are a real, pressing issue that needs a solution, is to figure out exactly how many emissions we are putting out into the environment.

  • Rebecca explains what synthetic microfibers are and identifies different types.

  • Timnit describes in more detail the scope of her and her co-authors’ research and how they built their research model.

• Wastewater Treatment Process

  • Timnit explains the wastewater treatment process and how the resulting biosolids output can potentially be used as fertilizer.

• Results of the Study

  • Timnit discusses the findings of their research and shares that between the years of 1950 and 2016, 5.6 million metric tons of synthetic microfibers were emitted just from washing machines.

  • Their research also noted that wastewater treatment would further shift synthetic microfiber emissions from water bodies to terrestrial environments.

  • Timnit points out that while wastewater treatment is good and essential for the wellbeing of the environment, we need to look at how biosolid and sludge management affects our terrestrial environments as well as our aquatic environments.

  • Timnit explains what the research  shows when it notes that microplastic fiber pollutants are increasing by 12.9% each year.

• Multi-Stakeholder Approach

  • Rebecca and Timnit affirm that while consumers can make a difference in reaching a solution to the issue of microfiber emissions, industry and legislation need to play a large role.