The Use of Hair to Care; A Sustainable Method Of Cleaning our Water Sources

 

                                                               Image courtesy of Google

Statistics from the United States Geographical Survey indicate that about 71% of the

earth’s surface is covered by water, and 96.5% of the water is held in our oceans. Of

course, our waters harbor a large percentage of the earth’s biodiversity, which includes

fish, sea mammals, coral reefs and plants such as sea weed. This biodiversity is what

we as human beings benefit from, we eat the fish and sea weed and profit off of the

aquatic life that reside within our marine borders.

Furthermore, these water bodies absorb the excessive heat trapped within the earth’s

atmosphere caused by the greenhouse effect. This plays a huge role in regulating and

stabilizing the temperature of the atmosphere. Dubbed ‘the planet’s carbon sink’, the

oceans absorb 25% of the earth’s carbon (IV) oxide, and produce 50% of the oxygen

we need a researched by the United Nations.

Unfortunately, one of the major pollutants of water that affects how water bodies

‘perform their functions’ is oil. According to a report by the United Nations

Environmental Programme (UNEP), there are three major ways through which oil ends

up in the water. These include; natural seeps from oil beds, land based pollutants such

as discharge of untreated water and wastes from oil refineries, and sea based pollutants

such as accidental oil spills from oil tankers and deliberate operational discharges of oil

from commercial vessels.

This oil covers the water surfaces making it difficult for light to penetrate, which is used

by aquatic plants to carry out photosynthesis, causing a rapid decline in their numbers.

Aquatic animals on the other hand are disadvantaged when their respiratory systems

are clogged with oil, which in turn leads to their demise. Birds that wade in water such

as pelicans get their feathers greased, depriving them of their ability to fly.

Further, oil insulates the oceans, preventing heat from being absorbed by the water,

traps in heat so that it is not released into the atmosphere and prevents the sea from

absorbing carbon(IV) oxide. This makes the aquatic habitat unsuitable for sustaining the

biodiversity therein due to the unfavorable living conditions.

In light of this, Lisa Gautier, a passionate environmentalist founded her organization-

Matter of Trust- in 1998. This organization runs a program dubbed Clean Wave, which

uses human hair, fur and fleece from animals to clean up oil spills. Fascinating right?

The main reason why people shampoo their hair is because it absorbs oil and becomes

greasy, which in turn traps dirt. Using this knowledge, she furthered her research with

the help of experts and now works globally to clean up our seas and lakes. The hair, fur

and fleece can be used to make mats that are spread out on the surface of the water,

and within a matter of seconds take in the oil. Did you know that a mat that weighs one

kilogram can absorb up to five times its weight in oil?

                                                              Image courtesy of Google

Other methods used to clean oil spills include the use of chemicals known as

dispersants, and the use of petroleum mats. These methods, in my opinion, are not as

environmentally friendly as the use of the aforementioned hair mats, since the hair mats

are biodegradable. In order to dispose the fur mats, they are either torched in an

incinerator or decomposed, which usually takes longer than the burning.

Indeed, necessity is the mother of invention. We need to be aware of the new

innovations around us, and strive to come up with others ourselves in order to make our

globe a better place. This is not only for our own benefit, but for the benefit of the

generations that will come after us.

Wendy Chepchumba, a second year Law Student at the University of Nairobi. She also serves as the

Marketing Editor of the University of Nairobi Law Journal.