Ocean exploration scientist, publicist and entrepreneur, American Rachael Miller created the Cora Ball, a device that filters the microplastics that come out of clothes when they are washed. During a visit to Barcelona, he spoke about the risk of dumping this waste into urban waters, which end up in the sea and are ingested by the species that inhabit it.
There are vocations that mark the course of life. This is the case of Rachael Miller (Vermont, USA) with the protection of the oceans. On a recent visit to Barcelona, where she was invited by the US Consulate in Spain, she couldn’t wait long to walk along the beach and collect small pieces of plastic that she later compared with other samples she had obtained in Hawaii. His goal was to show some high school students, to whom he lectured, the plastic pollution in our seas and oceans.
Miller is a science adventurer: Expedition Scientist, National Geographic Explorer and member of The Explorers Club. She is also a co-inventor of ball Coraa ball-shaped device that allows you to filter the microplastics that our clothes release when they are washed.
She is also the founder of Project Rozalia, a non-profit organization that helps protect the ocean from marine debris through cleanup, prevention and research in urban and coastal waters. Miller leads scientific expeditions whose results are reported in peer-reviewed publications and has created educational programs to inspire people of all ages to conserve water.
🇧🇷I feel happy in the water. It is necessary to protect what you love”, says the researcher. Miller grew up in the water. A competitive swimmer and sailor, her vocation to care for the oceans developed from an early age. 🇧🇷When I was 16 I went on a cruise. I remember that it marked me forever to see how hundreds of garbage bags were thrown into the sea from the back of the boat.🇧🇷
13 years ago, as an adult, on a trip with her husband along the coast of Maine (USA), she was amazed at the levels of garbage – which “reached knee height” – on the beaches of those uninhabited islands. That’s why she decided to found the Rozalia Project.
Then came the scientific expeditions and the development of educational programs for ecological awareness through the NGO.
Is the washing machine a danger to the oceans?
In this context, Rachael Miller read an article in a current scientific media about microfibers. It was the year 2013 and it was not yet known that these products polluted city waters. Subsequent scientific studies —also in Spain— identified washing machines as one of the main causes of microplastic discharge into the seas and oceans.
🇧🇷Sometimes a problem screams directly at you and forces you to react to it,” he explains. “We set up a project with several objectives: we wanted to contribute to generating more science about this problem, because there wasn’t a lot of research at that time. That way we could better understand the problem. We also wanted to propose a solution and sensitize the population, not only students, but industries such as textiles, materials engineering or filament manufacturing, to the use of other materials… We even addressed wastewater treatment. There were many places where this problem interconnected🇧🇷
🇧🇷Why should we be concerned about microfiber contamination? Microfibers are the most numerous type of microplastic in the seas. They cause harm to beings throughout the marine food chain, but especially to smaller ones such as plankton, which play a huge role in generating oxygen. On the other hand, microplastics transfer organic pollutants and affect the reproductive systems of living beings. We also know that humans ingest and inhale microfibers by the tens of thousands a year, and we don’t know much about the impact this has on our health.”, says the expert.
Filter the water the same way corals do
When Miller delved into the problem of microplastic contamination, he identified the field in which he could act: washing machines. After brainstorming, Miller launched a Kickstarter campaign in 2017 to develop Cora Ball, alongside his Project Rozalia co-founder James Lyne and designer Brooke Winslow.
The Cora Ball device filters water in the same way as corals. It picks up tiny particles from the water that flows through it. This sphere has tiny hooks that catch the fibers and lint that come out of your clothes so they can be picked up and thrown in the trash instead of down the drain.
Despite its simple mechanism, an independent study shows that the Cora Ball reduces microfiber contamination of water by 30%.
Another Miller estimate is that “if 10% of US households used the device, microplastic pollution equivalent to more than 30 million bottles of water could be reduced. Enough bottles of water to get from New York to London.”
But the solution is not final. “I think the direction this is all going is that we need to have filters in the washers and adopt a ‘lint cover’ pattern so that everyone’s washers and dryers run at peak efficiency. Maybe even a secondary lint-catching system”, indicates.
🇧🇷We have a big global problem. All of us who wear clothes are part of this pollution and all of us who eat or breathe suffer the consequences.🇧🇷
Barcelona’s microplastics don’t just come out of the washing machine
During his visit to Barcelona, he was also able to get to know the Surfing for Science initiative, led by Professor Anna Sànchez Vidal, from the University of Barcelona.
The project is supported by a network of surfers and paddlers from paddle surfing, to collect plastic samples from the most inaccessible areas. 🇧🇷They are doing a good job. They’ve collected a huge set of data over time and it’s very powerful data. It’s just a matter of time before people start paying attention. 10% of all microplastic found by Surfing for Science is artificial grass. And finding such a high percentage certainly means there’s a problem that isn’t getting much attention.”, acknowledges Miller.
The inventor believes that more research is needed in this field. 🇧🇷It’s not just about banning something, but studying and solving the problem. It’s not as easy as banning artificial grass, but also asking yourself: what’s causing it? What are the mechanisms for grass to pass from a field or garden to the ocean? There are some issues for which there is not enough data and therefore should be investigated to identify the problem🇧🇷
Miller dreams of a day when, with the help of innovation, we can recycle microplastics that are thrown away in the washing machine. 🇧🇷It is currently difficult to give these materials a different use than garbage. If we analyzed the clothes we both wore, we could find about 15 different materials. When washing, a polyester washing machine, an acrylic material washing machine and a cotton washing machine do not separate. Everything is mixed and each material reacts differently to temperatures and traction. Some fibers are stronger than others, some absorb water and others repel… Innovation is lacking to take advantage of these materials”, he concludes.