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Reifenabrieb hat den größten Anteil am Mikroplastikeintrag in die Umwelt

doris.knoblauch@ecologic.eu — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 14:44:55 +0000

Tyre wear accounts for the largest share of microplastic input into the environment doris.knoblauc… Wed, 07/06/2022 - 16:44

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This figure is surprising: every year in Germany, about 1.2 kilogrammes of tyre wear, i.e. particles produced by the rubbing of car tyres on the road surface, are released into the environment per capita. This makes tyre wear the number one source of microplastic emissions.

This means that urgent measures must be taken – however, in order to develop suitable strategies, we need reliable data on where and how much tyre abrasion is produced - as well as its distribution in the environment. In the project "Tyre Abrasion in the Environment" (RAU), researchers from TU Berlin, along with cooperation partners from science and industry, have investigated where particularly large amounts of tyre abrasion are produced in road traffic, the routes by which it enters the environment and how it could be effectively removed. The results were presented at a webinar in summer 2021.

When rubber and road surface rub against each other, abrasion occurs. Depending on the weight of the vehicle, speed, type of surface and other influencing factors, approximately half tyre rubber and half road surface. The abrasion is transported by rainwater and collects in the sewage system. The resulting wastewater poses a major problem, as stormwater overflows in areas with segregated systems usually discharge water directly into bodies of water - along with the abrasion. In cities with mixed systems, where rainwater and wastewater are discharged together, this may also occur if the sewage treatment plants are overloaded during heavy rainfall.

Tyre abrasion does not occur evenly. Researchers in the RAU project investigated different traffic situations on inner-city roads in Berlin: Curves, straights, inclines, roundabouts and traffic lights. For this purpose, novel and elaborate sampling techniques had to first be developed. Dr. Jens Reiber from the Wessling company explained the adapted sample preparation and the novel analysis methods.

The researchers found a particularly high amount of tyre wear around bends and at traffic lights, i.e. at places where the tyres are particularly stressed. Curves and intersections, where drivers typically make a lot of turns, are significantly more stressed than traffic lights, where not every car comes to a halt and has to start up again. On straights and uphill slopes, on the other hand, only little abrasion is generated. This is, naturally, in proportion to the amount of traffic: The more cars are on the road, the more tyre wear occurs.

RAU cooperation partner and tyre manufacturer Continental has investigated which factors have the greatest influence on how much tyre wear occurs. They found that individual driving behaviour is the most important factor.. This becomes evident immediately when you think of braking and acceleration marks on the asphalt. Other important factors are, listed in order of decreasing importance:: the course of the bend, the road surface, the vehicle, the tyre design, the temperature and the wetness or dryness. According to Conti expert Dr. Frank Schmerwitz, the friction between tyre and road serves another important purpose: it creates grip and more safety in road traffic.

During rainfall, between 12 and 20 per cent of tyre wear ends up in the aquatic environment. Ideally, the road sweeper comes along first.. The project also investigated this scenario in detail.. In tests conducted both on the road and indoors, the RAU project partner Sieker analysed how much waste the machines pick up and which parts of the tyre wear are picked up in the process and which are not. The indoor test already showed: the sweeper swallows up to about 80 percent of the particles, and about 55 percent of the microcomponents. The figures are worse on the road, partly because of cracks in the road surface and the fact that the sweeper often is unable to sweep directly along the edge of the road because of parked cars. The project partner has reached the following conclusion: In principle, street sweeping has a positive effect, but there is room for improvement. Dr. Harald Sommer, Sieker expert, reported that an enormous amount of tyre abrasion accumulates along the roadsides, which is often not picked up.

Where does the tyre wear end up? About 60 per cent ends up in our soils, 20 per cent in surface water, i.e. it enters into bodies of water via rainwater. A portion of this - 2 to 5 per cent - ultimately reaches the sea by way of the river mouth.. That may not sound like much at first, but it is: at 1.2 kilogrammes per German citizen per year, it is 24 to 60 grammes and thus a total of 1.92 to 4.8 million kilogrammes of tyre abrasion with which Germany alone pollutes the oceans every year.

At the end of the webinar, he question arose as to where the greatest potential lies for reducing tyre wear in the environment.. Daniel Venghaus recommended focusing on the road surface: He said it was best to keep tyre wear there as far as possible and to remove it by means of road cleaning. The fine particles in particular must be collected more efficiently, added Dr Harald Sommer. Dr. Frank Schmerwitz focused on individual responsibility, i.e. driving behaviour, and an intelligent influence on traffic flows. RAU project coordinator Prof. Matthias Barjenbruch had a practical tip: Clean the streets before it rains! The tours of the street cleaning should be scheduled more precisely. And of course, , as a society, we should reduce the use of cars and instead rely increasingly on public transport and bicycles.

Written by Wiebke Peters

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Unerwünschte Fasern: Mikroplastik aus Textilien

doris.knoblauch@ecologic.eu — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 13:15:11 +0000

Undesired fibres: Microplastics released from textiles doris.knoblauc… Wed, 07/06/2022 - 15:15

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A large volume of microplastics from sports and outdoor textiles enters the water cycle through washing. It is possible, however, to take countermeasures as early as the production stage. Consumers, too, can take measures themselves. Nearly everyone has outdoor or sports clothing in their wardrobe – it is comfortable, versatile and usually low maintenance. Laundering textiles made of plastics or plastic mixtures, however, causes microplastics to enter the water cycle. While reliable figures on this are not yet available, there are credible estimates: About 20 to 35 per cent of all microplastic waste comes from textiles. This mostly occurs in the form of fibres. They can be particularly harmful because fibres cause, among other things, entanglement in the digestive tract of animals. What can we do to reduce this environmental pollution? This was the question addressed by the TextileMission project in the "Plastics in the Environment" network.

The project team tackled the problem from different perspectives. One important goal was to find out how much microplastic actually enters the wastewater through typical household laundry: It is up to a total of 300 milligrams (mg) per kilogram of textiles in the first wash. Over the course of 10 washing cycles, up to 1000 mg can be emitted – 99 percent of which is polyester. The following detailed findings are interesting: 40 to 60 percent of microplastics are emitted during the first wash. This is mainly due to the fact that production residues are found in new goods, for example due to the abrasive effect of the knitting needles. In addition, the goods may have been contaminated during transport. Each textile was washed at least 10 times during the experiment, while some items were subjected to additional wear tests and up to 30 care cycles to simulate wear as close to real life conditions as possible.

An important parameter for microplastic discharge was the machine load. In the first wash cycle, it was twice as high when 1.5 instead of 3.5 kilograms of laundry were washed. The reason: the lower the load, the greater the mechanical stress on the textiles. Therefore, filling your machine efficiently is good for both your wallet and the environment.

Sewage treatment plants can process the majority of these microplastic fibres. The TextileMission team found that in Germany more than 90 per cent of these fibres are filtered out. Naturally, this only works if the wastewater from the household actually makes it to the sewage treatment plant. According to project estimates, a total of between 42 and 979 tonnes of PET from household laundry enter the sewage treatment plants in Germany every year - an enormously high figure. Given the retention in sewage treatment plants, this still means that between 2 and 47 tonnes of microplastics are discharged into nature. Optimised production with downstream purification could provide a remedy. However, it would have to be ensured that the microplastics are completely filtered out of the process water and disposed of properly. This is the responsibility of the manufacturers and the globally producing labels.

Another TextileMission team dealt with the question of which alternative fibres can improve the environmental balance of sports and outdoor textiles while reducing the microplastic problem. The researchers analysed whether recycled PET and regenerated cellulose fibres (viscose, Modal, Lyocell) have the potential to be a more sustainable alternative to virgin polyester in terms of raw material extraction, production and disposal. The answer is yes - but it depends on specific conditions such as cultivation and production location, mode of operation, energy mix and waste management. Recycled polyester can have sustainability advantages in production compared to virgin polyester, however, it also contributes to the microplastic problem. Cellulose regenerated fibres are produced from naturally occurring, renewable raw materials, but their production requires chemical processes. They are biodegradable under specific environmental conditions and thus offer the possibility of reducing microplastic emissions into the environment. Another idea for future outdoor fabrics is to develop textiles that emit fewer microplastic fibres and contain fewer additives, such as dyes.

The scientists also tackled the question of how consumers can contribute to a lower textile microplastic input into the environment. Their recommendations were to avoid fast fashion and to buy fewer and more durable textiles and even to buy second-hand clothes. And to make sure that no textile waste ends up in the environment, for example by donating clothing that is no longer used to social clothing centres, second-hand shops or charity clothing containers.

The results described here were presented at a webinar of "Plastic in the Environment" on 26.8.2021. More information on this, all presentations and further links at https://bmbf-plastik.de/de/veranstaltung/webinar-4-Plastikemissionen-in-der-Textilindustrie.

*Photo: Lena Aebli, Ecologic Institut

**Written by Wiebke Peters

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Leider fast unverzichtbar: Kunststoffverpackungen im Handel

doris.knoblauch@ecologic.eu — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 13:13:59 +0000

Unfortunately, plastic packaging remains virtually indispensable in retail. doris.knoblauc… Wed, 07/06/2022 - 15:13

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Many consumers would like to see the amount of plastic involved in their shopping decrease. Researchers have investigated how this can be achieved and have discovered many obstacles that demonstrate that the road to a plastic-reduced shopping world is still a long one. Standing in front of the fruit and vegetable shelves in a conventional supermarket, the first thing you see is the plastic packaging. According to the Federal Statistical Office, a total of about 39 kilogrammes of plastic packaging is produced per capita and year in Germany. Whether bananas or pears, Italian courgettes or mini tomatoes from regional organic cultivation, almost every product is wrapped or packaged in portions in plastic.

The research project "Consumer reactions to plastic and its avoidance possibilities at the point of sale" (VerPlaPoS) has now investigated how and to what extent consumers can already reduce or avoid plastic packaging through their purchasing decisions at the point of sale. A team of scientists from various disciplines approached this question from different angles: they conducted sociological surveys, developed new packaging and analysed various avoidance and recycling strategies from a business management perspective. VerPlaPoS didn´t focus exclusively on supermarket packaging, but also on textiles and the way they are packaged on their journey from production to the consumer - a topic which will be discussed in further detail in a future article. In this article, I will focus on the topic of plastic packaging in the supermarket as an example.

I find it particularly exciting how consumers (re)act when they are presented with different options to choose from at the supermarket. The team investigated this behaviour in two field studies: In the first experimental set-up, customers were observed when buying vegetables and fruit and then questioned as to their reasons for using or not using different types of plastic bags (e.g. made of biodegradable plastic). For the second study, consumers were asked to choose between different types of packaging (e.g. made of recycled plastics) for snack tomatoes.

The key question in the first study was: do you use bags or not? Per capita and year, about 40 of these so-called single use produce bags ("Hemdchenbeutel”), which are readily available as well as free of charge, are used in Germany. For the study, the researchers set up "packaging islands" in four supermarkets, where they found classic single use produce bags as well as three packaging alternatives: produce bags produced in a more climate-friendly way but not recyclable, compostable produce bags and paper bags. The conventional produce bags were free of charge, the others cost one or four cents each. Consumers were observed when buying fruit and vegetables and then interviewed. The majority, more than 60 per cent, did not use the bags at all. They bought loose fruit and vegetables without packaging or used the bags they had brought themselves. A good half of the shoppers who chose disposable packaging opted for a free shirt bag. Only a small proportion (around 17 per cent) of consumers were willing to pay extra for more environmentally friendly transport packaging.

According to the researchers, the high number of packaging-free purchases shows that the use of disposable bags could be reduced even further. This would be the best solution to reduce plastic consumption.

In the second field experiment (also conducted in the four supermarkets), the researchers investigated whether and how consumers choose alternative, more sustainable packaging solutions using the example of snack tomatoes. In this experiment, packaging solutions made of cardboard, R-PET (recycled PET), PLA (bioplastic) and conventional PET were available for selection. As a result, 53 percent of consumers chose sustainable packaging solutions despite the higher price - in the experiment it was 11 cents per pack.

In the case of the snack tomatoes, a large proportion of consumers were willing to make a sustainable contribution by making an active purchase decision to avoid conventional plastic packaging - even if this required a surcharge. However, the knowledge required to make such decisions is often lacking in everyday life, and sustainable packaging alternatives are rarely available, as conventional plastic is generally still the first choice of packaging solutions for retailers and manufacturers due to its low price.

The authors' conclusion: It is difficult for consumers to choose more sustainable alternatives. On the one hand, packaging should be reduced to a minimum, or products should be bought in "environmentally friendly" packaging. To date, alternative packaging is scarce – not least because industry and manufacturers are not being held accountable to a sufficient degree. On the other hand, packaging-free shopping is not always the best option for the environment: the environment can be polluted in other ways, for instance by an increase in food waste due to food spoiling faster.

These findings match the results of another study of the VerPlaPoS project on the "disposal and avoidance behaviour of consumers". In a Germany-wide online survey, the scientists collected suggestions and wishes for changes in which concrete measures could facilitate the reduction of plastic packaging in their everyday processes.

The participants demanded that politicians introduce laws to oblige industry, manufacturers and trade to take measures to reduce packaging. Such laws could, for example, concern packaging design or create framework conditions to encourage retailers to switch to refill and deposit systems. Above all, disposable packaging, bottles and bags as well as multiple and outer packaging should be banned. Economic instruments such as taxes on plastic (packaging) are also considered beneficial. In general, there is a desire for a larger range of products offered in reusable packaging, for example for hygiene products, detergents and cleaning agents. In addition, the study participants would like to see a larger range of unpackaged products, such as refillable shampoos and cleaning products. These should also be offered at drugstores and discounters. This, however, is tied to the expectation that unpackaged alternatives should not be more expensive than packaged products. Price does play an important role in consumers' decisions regarding the purchase of products with reduced packaging.

The results presented here, along with many other interesting findings, can be accessed in the final report of VerPlaPoS, which is available online.

Written by Wiebke Peters

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Plastik in Böden: Vorsorge ist Trumpf

doris.knoblauch@ecologic.eu — Wed, 06 Jul 2022 12:59:22 +0000

Plastics in soils: Precaution is key doris.knoblauc… Wed, 07/06/2022 - 14:59

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Every year, more than 19,000 tonnes of plastics end up in the soil in Germany. Little is known about the consequences, but a scientific assessment suggests that rapid and comprehensive countermeasures should be taken.

Plastic waste in the landscape has long since become a "familiar" sight in many places. Yet such plastic waste, carelessly discarded or deliberately dumped on roadsides, is one of the main pathways through which soils become contaminated with plastic. Especially when it is reduced to microplastics and accumulates permanently below the earth's surface, it can have negative consequences.

The questions of how much plastic gets into the soils in the first place, where it comes from and what dangers it poses were the focus of the webinar "Plastic in Soils" at the end of January 2022. A team led by Jürgen Bertling from Fraunhofer UMSICHT, coordinator of the "Plastic in the Environment" project PlastikBudget, determined which emission sources are significant for agricultural soils. These include production materials such as foils used in asparagus cultivation, plant pots or planting aids such as clips and wires. Seeds, fertilisers and so-called soil conditioners are also much used. These are all frequently coated with polymers. This is to ensure that seeds germinate at a certain time or that nutrients are released into the soil over a longer period of time.

Another important source is compost, which often contains plastic – partly due to mishandling, and littering, i.e. plastic waste that gets into the environment, for example through tourism or large outdoor events. Plastic is also frequently found in sewage sludge used for fertiliser. According to the research team's analyses, the total emission of plastics into agricultural soils in Germany is about 19,000 tonnes per year. 19 percent of this is caused by agriculture itself, mainly in the form of coated fertilisers (about three quarters) and foils (about one quarter, most of it from fodder production). The remaining 81 per cent of total plastic emissions to soils consist of sewage sludge (54 per cent) and drifting plastic waste (38 per cent), while composts and digestate account for 8 per cent.

The researchers did not take their own measurements, but used existing data. The estimates determined are conservative, Jürgen Bertling emphasised - it is possible that the quantities of plastic emitted into the soil are much greater. The distribution of the inputs is very heterogeneous: It ranges from a few grams to several hundred kilograms per hectare and year. The team's findings are worrying: "We assume that the input of plastics leads to a devaluation of our agricultural soils," says Jürgen Bertling. Soils consisting of 0.1 percent plastic are considered devalued. At the current input dynamics, the soils could therefore be completely devalued in 20 to 100 years. "Since the use of plastics is currently increasing, this could even accelerate considerably," warns the researcher.

A remedy could be an improved collection of plastics, for example from foils, the use of more degradable plastics and legally defined degradation times. Such measures should be additionally combined with an educational campaign for farms that aims to inform farmers about possibilities and obligations to reduce emissions and consumption, about how to avoid the use of plastics and, should that not be possible, about how to recycle used plastics. "We know little about the damage, yet in the spirit of precaution we should work towards reducing plastic emissions into the soil in the future," said Jürgen Bertling.

Dr. Annegret Biegel-Engler, head of the department "Measures for Soil Protection" at the Federal Environment Agency, took a closer look at the impact of plastic in soils and whether this could become problematic. Generally, micro- or nanoplastics cannot be removed from soils. Plastics often contain additives such as plasticisers, flame retardants or UV-protective agents. Degradation in the environment is very slow: plastic parts are broken down in various ways, first to micro, then to nano size, for example by physical influences such as abrasion or UV radiation. The amount of time it takes for plastic to actually degrade in the soil depends on the type of plastic, particle size and environmental conditions.

Microplastics in soil can have different effects: they reduce the density and thus the water-holding capacity, an effect that is often desired and brought about in horticulture, for example by introducing polystyrene beads. In laboratory experiments at high microplastic concentrations, effects on the lifespan, growth, digestion and reproduction of soil organisms have been observed. Chemical additives, when ingested by small organisms, can potentially be harmful to their health. "It is still difficult for us to make a general assessment, but there are indications that microplastics could be a relevant, long-term stress factor for the soil ecosystem. For precautionary reasons, action should therefore be taken, especially since microplastics in soils can also shift to other ecosystems, such as aquatic ones," Annegret Biegel-Engler summarised. The biochemist pointed to other pathways of microplastics into soils, such as riding surfaces and artificial turf sports fields, and the dismantling of wind turbines. In order to reduce the input of plastics into soils, various legal requirements and measures should be used in Germany and the EU. Already in force in 2021 is a far-reaching ban on the use of single-use plastic products in the European Union. Stricter microplastic limits should apply to materials placed on or in soils (e.g. composts, sewage sludge). To this end, the EU Fertiliser Regulation and the Sewage Sludge Directive, as well as waste legislation, should be amended. In addition, the microplastic content of soils should be examined and, if necessary, precautionary values should be anchored in the Federal Soil Protection Ordinance.

Written by Wiebke Peters

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