California is suffering a plastic pollution crisis: microplastics are poisoning the state’s beaches, rivers, bays, ocean waters, air, soil, and citizens. The devastation to our environment with 4,000 metric tons of synthetic fibers entering California’s natural systems every year is beyond the pale. If we don’t take action now, we risk our food and freshwater security as plastic pollution runs rampant.

Microplastics pose a significant health threat, as they have already been discovered in our food, drinking water, and even our air. They are in our bodies and our bloodstreams. Washing synthetic clothing contributes to 35% of all ocean microplastic pollution with a single load of laundry releasing hundreds of thousands of microplastics. Some of these escape wastewater treatment plants and enter the ocean where they are ingested by marine life and, in turn, by us. Those that are captured in wastewater treatment plants are transferred as “biosolids” to be used as fertilizer for agricultural lands where they contaminate soil and transfer to plants. 

With a plastic problem of this scale, we need to take more action to safeguard ourselves and our environment. California’s Microfiber Filtration Bill, AB 1628, would require that all new washing machines for sale in California have a microfiber filtration system. This bill will stop microfiber contamination at its source and decrease annual microfiber emissions by almost 80 percent, ensuring a safer future for Californians and our environment.

Send a letter to your CA senator today asking them to Invest In Our Planet by supporting the Microfiber Filtration Bill. Passing this Bill is the first step toward a cleaner, safer, and healthier California for everyone.