# Can microplastics be removed from water at wastewater plants/

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-microplastics-be-removed-from-water-at-wastewater-plants/826544>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 22, 2018, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-microplastics-be-removed-from-water-at-wastewater-plants/826544 "2018-12-22T20:03:22Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\
**Post date:** [December 22, 2018, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-microplastics-be-removed-from-water-at-wastewater-plants/826544/1 "2018-12-22T20:03:22Z")

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Humanity is busy [filling up the Marianas Trench](https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/dec/20/plastic-pollution-mariana-trench-deepest-point-ocean) with plastic waste. OK, it’ll take a bit longer than 20 minutes to do that, but it’s still a problem.

One source of microplastic waste is polyester that comes off clothes, probably when we wash them. And I’m sure there’s other sources that get into the sewers as well. How easy would it be to remove this stuff from waste water at the plants?

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**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\
**Post date:** [December 22, 2018, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-microplastics-be-removed-from-water-at-wastewater-plants/826544/2 "2018-12-22T20:47:48Z")

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It’s been studied:

> **[Svenskt Vatten utbildning - Svenskt Vatten](https://www.svensktvatten.se/utbildning/vara-kurser-seminarier--och-konferenser/)**
>
> Svenskt Vattens utbildningsverksamhet utvecklas ständigt. Vi ser det som ett av våra viktigaste uppdrag att hjälpa våra medlemmar med deras kompetensutveckling.

> **[Removing microplastics from tap water starts at treatment plants - Digital...](https://www.digitaljournal.com/tech-science/removing-microplastics-from-tap-water-starts-at-treatment-plants/article/501870)**
>
> There has been a multitude of studies on the impact of microplastics on the environment and in marine life. However, the use of microplastics in clothing

etc.

From the second link:

> [@](#):
>
> The bottom line is evident - Water treatment plants, those plants treating drinking water, have no agreed upon methodology for taking plastic pollution measurements or removing the plastic particles. Water UK reported, “the water industry has no current experience or technologies to separate out microplastics, and treatment of micro plastics by the water industry has never been explored.”