The proposed polyester legislation from several US states in light of textile microfiber pollution appears to have hit the buffers in the respective state assemblies of California, New York and Connecticut.
Time constraints would seem to be the primary reason that any law-making on this issue has been delayed, while – with the governor’s approval – Connecticut looks set to progress the motion to a stage requiring the formation of a microfiber pollution working group.

It was in March and April respectively that the US states of California and Connecticut took the unprecedented step of proposing legislation which would see polyester garments legally required to bear warning labels regarding their potential to shed microfibers during domestic washing cycles.

Without allowing for proper research to study methods of curbing microfiber pollution, this approach would create confusion among consumers by insinuating that synthetic fibers have a worse environmental impact than natural fibers without the data to support this conclusion.

The proposed legislation in California hopes to start addressing this pollution. It’s necessary to improve the information available to consumers so warning labels on clothing about microfibers could be a positive step.

A similar bill proposed in New York State has been referred to the Environmental Conservation committee.