Water Contamination and Impacts of Synthetic Microfibers Pollutants to the Global Ecosystem

We live in a plastic era, and microplastics (MPs) (shorter than 5 millimeters in length)—the smaller pieces of plastic broken down from larger ones—find their sources from a variety of plastic polymers. Microplastics are often classified into three broad types: microbeads—found in skin care products; plastic pellets—come from industrial manufacturing; and microfibers—coming from synthetic textiles. Microfiber pollution is an emerging issue, with synthetic microfiber pollutants entering our waterways and ultimately contaminating the air and soil. Nonbiodegradable polymers such as nylon, PP, PET, and PE account for these synthetic microfibers, sourced primarily from textile industries and domestic washing. The synthetic filaments that make up our clothing, when washed along with the effects of water, friction, abrasion, and detergents, lead to the shedding of those filaments, eventually ending up in water streams. Textiles at every stage, from production to use to disposal, leach out synthetic microfibers flowing through untreated wastewater effluents, absorbing toxic chemicals, heavy metals, and oil, becoming lethal pollutants in rivers, lakes, and oceans (Das et al. Bioresource Technol 102:7381–7387, 2011). So now the tiny microfibers are dispersed throughout the water, leading to contamination, restricted not just in the water but in the soil and land. The inclusion of the contaminants into the aquatic and land food chains is heading for a global impact on human health and the ecosystem. This chapter deals with the synthetic clothing, mostly polyester, nylon, and acrylic mixed with microfiber, as new budding pollutants of water and how it is forging into ecological consequences on a global scale. Studies report that these polluted and contaminated microfibers cause stomach damage, inflammation, endocrine system disruption, and cardiotoxicity in both marine animals and humans.