You ripper!… how you open your packets is generating tiny microplastics
New research led by Dr Cheng Fang from the Global Centre of Environmental Remediation has revealed opening plastic packaging, such as plastic bags, chip packets and bottles, is creating tiny microplastics we might be consuming every day.
Published in Nature Scientific Reports, Dr Fang and team tested various methods of opening every-day packaging by ripping, using scissors and twisting to determine the amount of microplastics produced. They found that fibres, fragments and triangle pieces of plastic, ranging from nanometres to millimetres in size, were generated as a result.
The authors estimated that approximately ten to 30 nanograms (0.00001–0.00003 milligrams) of microplastics may be generated per 300 centimetres of plastic, depending on the opening approach and conditions of the plastic, such as stiffness, thickness or density.
“At this stage, there isn’t enough information to determine whether there are any risks as a result of this microplastic ingestion, so we hope to continue our work and determine the health implications,” Dr Fang said.
Related news
- From the Classroom to the Operating Room: Emily Mason’s Journey as an Indigenous Female Surgeon
- Partnering to prevent local extinction of threatened marsupial
- Launch of the School Students’ Statement on the Right to a Healthy Environment
- Funding boost to technology for lower emission steel
- Newcastle team on mission to improve childhood cancer outcomes
The University of Newcastle acknowledges the traditional custodians of the lands within our footprint areas: Awabakal, Darkinjung, Biripai, Worimi, Wonnarua, and Eora Nations. We also pay respect to the wisdom of our Elders past and present.