Disposable masks are designed to as the name suggests be disposable, this is because it is made up of thermoplastics, most commonly polypropylene, which is not biodegradable nor recyclable (Martinko, 2020), with all these being thrown in the trash after each use, this significantly increases the amount of plastic waste that our planet has to endure. Researchers at University College London have estimated that if every person used one disposable mask a day for one year, it would lead to “66,000 tonnes of plastic waste and create ten times more climate change impact than using reusable masks” (Chan, 2020).
Multiple studies have shown that reusable masks are just as effective as disposable masks if manufactured properly. Both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organisation have approved their use. The CDC stating that because CO2 molecules are small, they can escape between the cloth layers of the mask, but the molecules that carry the Covid 19 virus are much much larger and cannot pass through the cloth mask meaning that the possibility of transmission does not increase just because a cloth mask is worn (CDC, 2021). |
Properly taking care of the mask will greatly impact the mask's ability to filter off unwanted particles, the CDC recommends masks be washed regularly with soap or detergent or boiled for at least 10 minutes (Martinko, 2020). While you might worry washing your mask constantly will wear it out, the opposite is true. A study done by a UK organisation found that the more you wash a mask, the more effective at filtering particles it becomes, especially after five hot washes due to the fibres compressing on a micro-level. This micro-level compression improves the mask's ability to block out particles (Studman, 2020).
Furthermore, single-use masks can actually pose a safety hazard, this is because most people do not correctly dispose of them. When a mask carrying infectious particles is incorrectly disposed of, this can transfer and contaminate other surfaces in public, when people touch these surfaces this can create a greater risk of exposure to the public (Huang, 2020). Not to mention when these disposable masks are littered in the ocean, it is detrimental to sea creatures as they could mistake it for food or become tangled in the masks (Parry, 2021). |