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Small microplastics and microfibers found in high concentrations around Kantamanto, the world’s largest secondhand textile market in Accra, Ghana: A citizen science study
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Microplastics found in high concentrations around Kantamanto, the world’s largest secondhand textile market in Accra, Ghana: A citizen science study
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A citizen science investigation near Kantamanto — the world's largest secondhand clothing market in Accra, Ghana — found microplastic and microfiber concentrations in air, rain, and a nearby lagoon that were dramatically higher than anywhere else reported globally, up to 200 times more microplastics in the lagoon than other worldwide comparisons. The study links this extreme pollution to the massive volume of discarded fast-fashion garments exported from wealthy countries. The findings highlight how the global secondhand textile trade concentrates microplastic pollution in communities least responsible for producing it.
Small microplastics and microfibers found in high concentrations around Kantamanto, the world’s largest secondhand textile market in Accra, Ghana: A citizen science study
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Researchers found shockingly high levels of microplastics and tiny fibers in the air and water around Ghana's massive secondhand clothing market, up to 100 times more than in other major cities worldwide. This pollution comes largely from unwanted clothes shipped from wealthier countries, meaning the environmental and health burden of our fast fashion habits (breathing in and being exposed to these particles) often falls on communities far away who never bought the clothes in the first place. The study is a wake-up call for stronger regulations on textile waste before it becomes an even bigger global health problem.
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