Stop Ocean Threads
Our clothes are made of millions of tiny fibres, the majority of which are plastic. With every wash, microfibres shed from our clothes and end up in the environment. We've been campaigning to #StopOceanThreads and get filters fitted in washing machines.
Campaign update: 21st November 2023
On 21st November 2023, we handed in our Stop Ocean Threads petition calling for the introduction of mandatory microfibre filters for washing machines by 2024 after receiving over 44,000 signatures.
A huge thank you to everyone who used their voice to campaign for change.
Read on to find out more about this four-year campaign and what happens next.
The problem
Washing synthetic clothes accounts for 35% of primary microplastics found in the environment. An estimated 9.4 trillion fibres are released from washes every week in the UK, so it’s not surprising that billions of them end up in the ocean.
69
%
of clothes made from synthetic fibres
63
%
of shrimp in the North Sea contain synthetic fibres
Worryingly, fish eat these fibres, which means they’re heading for our plates. 63% of shrimp in the North Sea contain synthetic fibres.
The solution
We're asking UK Government to require washing machine manufacturers to fit microfibre filters in all new domestic and commercial machines, by law, by 2025.
Our initial deadline of 2023 has been missed. With France implementing filters into new washing machines by 1st January 2025, we're asking the UK Government, as a minimum, takes action by then.
The best way to stop the flow of microfibres into our ocean is to fit filters in washing machines. The filters would be internally fitted in domestic and commercial washing machines and would capture microfibres in the same way lint is caught in tumble driers, stopping fibres at source.
These filters will make a real difference to microfibre pollution in our seas. Governments and business must work together to stop ocean threads at source.
Ella Daish, Campaigns Officer
