Pollution Prevention Project Webinar Series: Wet Wipes

Wet wipes can do a good job of pretending they aren’t made of plastic! Recent studies have found plastic in 80% of tested wet wipes and the University of Toronto Trash Team have found that wet wipes alone made up 25% of all macroplastic pollution in the Don River. A wet wipe is made of fibers that are moistened by water and various cleansing agents depending on their use. Of the manufactured wipes there are many kinds, including baby wipes, facial wipes, pet wipes, sanitizing wipes, and even wipes for eyeglasses.

On Thursday November 14th, 2024 from 12:00-1:00pm, the University of Toronto Trash Team, a collaborator of the Toronto Inner Harbour Floatables Strategy, will be discussing the problem of plastic wet wipe leakage and associated microplastics into our local aquatic ecosystems and share findings from Wipes vs Pipes, including research estimating the amount of wet wipe pollution in our local rivers and synthesizing potential solutions based on interviews with stakeholders.