Microplastics (microscopic plastic) are plastic particles smaller than 5 mm in size that can be found in various places. Microplastics are found in 93% of bottled water tested in the global study. The image of bottled water as clean and pure is being challenged by a global investigation that found the water tested is often contaminated with tiny plastic particles.
It's unclear what the effect of microplastics is on human health, and no previous work has established a maximum safe level of consumption. There are no rules or standards for allowable limits of microplastics in bottled water in Canada, the United States, and Europe. Rules and standards for other countries from the study are not known. Microplastics have been shown to absorb toxic chemicals linked to cancer and other illnesses and then release them when consumed by fish and mammals.
While microplastics may physically harm organisms, there’s also concern that they could leach chemicals such as plasticizers, UV stabilizers, flame retardants, and colorants. In addition to what’s in them, microplastics have also been found to attract pesticides and other toxic chemicals into the water.
Extensive tests conducted at Professor Sherri Mason’s lab at the State University of New York in Fredonia were able to record microplastic particles as small as 6.5 microns or 6,500 nanometers.
The Black Berkey filters (purification elements) can reduce viruses down to the nanometer scale, in the tested range of 24-26 nanometers; 24-26 nanometers is .024 to .026 microns…in other words, much smaller than the plastic particles being found in water.
The fact that Black Berkey filters (purification elements) have been tested to remove viruses to the nanometer range suggests that contaminants much larger in size, such as plastic fibers, should also be removed. Nonetheless, since actual testing of plastic fibers has not yet been conducted, NMCL(New Millennium Concepts, Ltd) can’t officially make that claim.
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