Bio-based materials may pose a greater health risk to some of the planet’s most important species than the conventional plastics they are designed to replace, a new study has shown.
Bio-based materials may pose a greater health risk to some of the planet’s most important species than the conventional plastics they are designed to replace, a new study has shown.
Such materials are increasingly being advocated as environmentally friendly alternatives to plastics, and used in textiles and products including clothing, wet wipes and period products.
However, microfibres of the materials are emitted into the environment through the laundry cycle, the application of sewage sludge as fertilisers, or the simple wear and tear of textile products.
Despite increasing quantities of bio-based products being produced and sold all over the world, there has been little research to assess their potential impact on species and ecosystems.
Read more at University of Plymouth
Image: A new study in the journal Environmental Science and Technology tested the effects of conventional polyester fibres and two bio-based fibres –viscose and lyocell – on earthworms, a species critical to the health of soils globally (Credit: Lloyd Russell/University of Plymouth)
