Wet wipes can do a good job of pretending they aren’t made of plastic! Recent studies have found plastic in 80% of tested wet wipes and we have found that wet wipes alone made up 25% of all macroplastic pollution in the Don River. A wet wipe is made of fibers that are moistened by water and various cleansing agents depending on their use. Of the manufactured wipes there are many kinds, including baby wipes, facial wipes, pet wipes, sanitizing wipes, and even wipes for eyeglasses.
Project Overview
In collaboration with Community Matters Toronto, our objective is to prevent wet wipes from entering the Don River and other environments by using three approaches: public awareness, best practice, and policy.
Many people are unaware their wipes are made of plastic nor what happens to them if they are flushed. This is in part due to poor labelling on wipes packages. The lack of standard, regulated “Do Not Flush” labelling makes it unclear to consumers that wipes should only be thrown in the trash. By engaging the community at the public, commercial, and legislative levels, the discouragement of flushing behaviours will be a coordinated effort.
This Project Aims to:
- Estimate the environmental emissions and pollution of wet wipes in Toronto
- Survey stores to understand the market demands and standards of the wet wipe industry
- Determine how plastic wet wipes are a source of microfiber pollution in the environment
How Do Wipes Reach Aquatic Ecosystems?
Though wet wipes are seen as an alternative to paper, they should not be flushed like paper as they risk clogging the septic pipes that transport sewage material to wastewater treatment plants, and release plastic into the waterway. In Toronto, we have combined sewer overflow that prevents the sewer network from exceeding capacity during flood events. When it rains, this means that collected water and sewage material are both released from septic tanks directly into nearby creeks, rivers, and eventually Lake Ontario.
When plastic wet wipes are released in the Don River, they are either caught and sit in the riparian zone or are slowly carried downstream to Lake Ontario. Additionally, wet wipes in the environment will continue to degrade into microfibers – a type of microplastic.
Results:
A larger study in the Rochman Lab called pSIREN (Plastics Spiraling in River Networks) found that wet wipes make up more than 25% of all plastic found in the Don River! Wet wipes were the second highest litter category, behind plastic bags.
The information available on wipe packages sold in stores is not always clear. Of 72 surveyed wipe packages, across different types of wipes sold, 33% did not display any form of disposal information.
Average microfibers shed from different types of wet wipes under different conditions over a 6-week period. The average number of microfibers shed is influenced by polymer type, with polypropylene shedding more readily than polyester, and the flushable material shedding more than either plastic polymer.
This project is led by Simran Hansra, a recent graduate from the University of Toronto with an Honours BSc – double majoring in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology and Biodiversity & Conservation (and with a minor in English). Prior to receiving the Pollution Prevention Project Fellowship, she was a research assistant in the Rochman Lab working towards characterizing plastic pollution in the Don River.
For more information, please email Simran Hansra or Chelsea Rochman.
This project is supported by Community Matters Toronto, and Partners in Project Green, a program of Toronto and Region Conservation Authority.
