What are We Wearing?

Proud Sponsors of Western Michigan University students' Beach Clean Up!

7/3/2018

Clothing Matters is concerned about PLASTIC... from micro-fibers of polyester clothing now in our food chain and polluting our Great Lakes ecosystems, to the unprecedented amount of plastic waste that you can see on beaches everywhere.

We proudly partnered with Western Michigan University MBA students on an IMPACT Project Beach Clean-Up and fundraiser at Holland State Park June 24, to support Alliance for the Great Lakes. Students wanted sustainable T-shirts that prevent pollution. They chose a deliciously comfortable, 100% organic cotton shirt and created an encapsulating design for the front. On the back, they chose to print this information about their sustainable choice:

This organic cotton shirt offsets polyester's effects as a primary source of micro-plastic pollution in our Great Lakes & prevents 1/3 lb of insecticide from polluting 700 gallons of water to grow 1 non-organic cotton t-shirt!

The need for us all to understand and take actions that help prevent the myriad of ways in which the plastic you use impacts personal & ecological well-being is paramount.

PLEASE do your share:

~Before you get to the beach (or anywhere else), find ways to avoid Single Use Plastic (SUP) so you aren't part of this

~While at the beach, address the issue of plastic and rally others to join you in picking up as much of it as you can--a pocketful of tiny pieces will prevent them from being mistaken by fish for food.

~Manage and take ALL of your trash with you--even tiny pieces--and encourage others to do the same.

~Before you buy plastic, petroleum-based clothing (polyester/acrylic/nylon/acetate), consider the 1000s of unregulated chemicals used to make apparel, many of which are persistent and hormone-disrupting, absorbable through the skin into bloodstreams and attached to tiny pieces that shed and contribute to what is now a significant source of micro-plastic pollution in our Great Lakes, rivers, oceans and drinking water.

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Study: Your Great Lakes microbrews might come with a hint of microplastic

7/3/2018

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We're proud to provide sustainable apparel & accessories to our LogoWear partners who choose to prevent pollution with the clean comfort of high quality organic cotton and hemp for their brand.
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We invite your team to take a leadership role in helping reduce micro-plastic fiber pollution in our Great Lakes Basin & beyond.

A recently released study out of Dunwoody College of Technology in Minneapolis shares the latest evidence regarding micro-plastic pollution in our Great Lakes. Professor Mary Kosuth, conducted the study, a calling to take actions that reduce the amount of plastic we create & consume.

Polyester and other petroleum-based fabrics (i.e. acrylic, nylon, acetate) are significant sources of micro-fiber pollution in our Great Lakes, rivers & oceans. Clothes release half a million tons of microfibers in the ocean every year, equivalent to more than 50 billion plastic bottles.

Conclusions from the original study:
"This investigation reveals troubling amounts of anthropogenic (from human activity) debris in global tap water, North American beer, and internationally sourced sea salt. Particles were found in 81% of tap water samples, as well as in all 12 brands of beer and sea salt. These findings add to a growing body of knowledge about plastic pollution in human consumables" (Kosuth, 2018).

Michigan Radio recently shares,
"We found in marine environments, at least, these plastic particles are very good at absorbing chemicals from the water," Kosuth said. "So things like PCB, DDT, brominated flame retardents, things like these can actually form a coating on the outside of the plastic particles, which means that we would be ingesting higher amounts of that” (NPR, Michigan Radio).

Listen to the discussion:

http://michiganradio.org/post/study-your-great-lakes-microbrews-might-come-hint-microplastic

For Kosuth's Study:

http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0194970

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Proud Sponsors of Western Michigan University students' Beach Clean Up!

Study: Your Great Lakes microbrews might come with a hint of microplastic

Listen to the discussion:

For Kosuth's Study:

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