(Cth) Require New Dishwashers to be Fitted with Microfibre Filters

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Author: Melody Su, Syeda Ailiya Naqvi, Danya Daoud & Thomas O’Sullivan | Publish date: 1/3/2026

• P: New dishwashers can be manufactured and sold without being fitted with a microplastic filter.

• S: The Minister for Climate Change and Energy should amend Section 11 of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Dishwashers) Determination 2024 (Cth) to include a requirement that all dishwashers be fitted with built-in filters or traps to capture plastic particles.

Problem Identification: 

Section 11 of the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Dishwashers) Determination 2024 (Cth) lists Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards requirements for dishwashers. However, this section does not require new dishwashers to be fitted with built-in filters or traps to capture plastic particles. 

According to Okoffo et al. (2025) from the University of Queensland, this means that ‘dishwashing of plastic articles has a clear potential for generating small fragments of plastic particles’, which can be released into domestic wastewater. Therefore, they have said that dishwashers are known to ‘[carry] the potential risk of adverse impacts on the environment and human health.’

Context: 

Microplastics refer to plastic particles under 5mm in size. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, ‘plastic products … can break down into microplastics.’ 

Microplastic filters refer to ‘water filters, or traps’ that reduce ‘the number of [microplastic] fibers entering the waste stream.’ 

Liu et al. from Wenzhou University found that the plastic materials and detergents inside dishwashers ‘degrade during the washing process, leading to an increased release of [microplastics] into the wastewater.’

A study by Okoffo et al. (2025) noted that in Australia, 58% of households own a dishwasher, which represents a widespread potential source of microplastic release.

Okoffo et al. (2023) reported that ‘[c]urrently, conventional and advanced wastewater treatment processes are ineffective at removing plastics entering WWTPs [wastewater treatment plants]’. Clean Ocean Foundation (COF) explained that the microplastic capture rate of WWTPs varied from 50% to 98% and remained uncertain due to ‘different technologies employed.’ Sol Sánchez et al. stated that WWTPs alone are ‘insufficient’ because ‘millions of microplastics are still discharged into the environment every day by each WWTP’.

Arguments:

Liu et al. argued that ‘dishwashers … contribute to [microplastics] pollution.’ Okoffo et al. (2025) noted that ‘[d]uring mechanical washing, articles are exposed to high-temperature water’, which can lead to the release of microplastics. They found that a full load in a dishwasher can release ‘up to ∼920,000 particles per cycle … equating to ∼33 million particles per household per year.’ According to the Australian Marine Conservation Society (AMCS), ‘[b]ecause these plastics are so tiny, they cannot be filtered out during normal sewage treatment works, and can be washed into our oceans.’ Pal et al. emphasised that microplastics are ‘accumulating in aquatic ecosystems and posing significant environmental … risks.’ 

According to Okoffo et al. (2025), microplastics produced by dishwashers can carry ‘potential risk[s]’ for ‘human health’. Hoang et al. found that human exposure to microplastics can occur through the ‘consumption of contaminated water and food’. COF warned that microplastics can ‘end up in cultured products for human consumption’ due to the ingestion of microplastics by animals such as fish. Winiarska et al. stated that consuming microplastics in humans can ‘[lead] to serious health issues, including various cancers, respiratory disorders, and inflammatory bowel disease.’ AMCS concluded, ‘[t]here’s a real danger that you are eating food contaminated by microplastics.’

Advice/Solution Identification:

In a conversation with FORE, Dr Elvis D. Okoffo, an environmental health research fellow at the University of Queensland, called for ‘future dishwashers to be fitted with built-in filters or traps to capture plastic particles.’ He argued that the most effective way to address microplastic pollution from dishwashers is to intervene early in the product lifecycle, thereby ‘removing this pollutant before it can enter the environment.’ He stated that this could ‘significantly reduce the amount of plastic entering wastewater systems and the wider environment.’ 

Precedent:

There is domestic precedent for requiring filters within household appliances to reduce microplastic pollution. In Australia, new residential and commercial washing machines are subject to a phase-in of microfibre filters under the National Plastics Plan 2021 (which requires these filters to be introduced by 1 July 2030).

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Public Support: 

1. Dr Elvis D. Okoffo (see acknowledgements)

   
   

This list reflects publicly stated positions and should not necessarily be taken as endorsement of this specific brief.

News Coverage:

• ABC News - “Average household dishwasher releases 33 million nano and microplastic particles per year, research finds”. This article reported that research shows dishwashers release microplastics into wastewater, with calls for Australian standards to address pollution at the source rather than relying on treatment plants. By: Stephen Clarke | 2 July 2025 - Read the article here.

• The Cool Down - “New research raises concern about dangerous health risk caused by dishwasher use: ‘Seemingly harmless everyday actions’”. This article reported that dishwashers can release micro- and nanoplastics from plastic items into wastewater, contributing to pollution that wastewater treatment plants cannot fully remove. By: Grace Howarth | 17 October 2025 - Read the article here.

• 9 News - “Microplastics linked to lung and colon cancer, study says”. This article reported that researchers have identified potential human health risks associated with microplastic exposure in the respiratory, digestive, and reproductive systems. By: Mikala Theocharous | 20 December 2024 - Read the article here.

• The Guardian - “Microplastics could raise risk of stroke and heart attack, study says”. This article reported that doctors have warned of the potentially life-threatening effects from plastic pollution after finding a substantially raised risk of stroke, heart attack and early death in people whose blood vessels were contaminated with microscopic plastics. By: Ian Sample | 7 March 2024 - Read the article here.

Where to go to learn more: 

1. (2022) Inquiry into Plastic Pollution in Australia’s Oceans and Waterways | Clean Ocean Foundation - This submission highlighted wastewater treatment plants as major sources of microplastic pollution. It warned that current regulations fail to monitor or limit microplastic discharges. Read the full submission here.

2. (2021) National Plastics Plan | Australian Government - This is a federal plan that outlined national actions to reduce plastic pollution, including microplastics. Read the full plan here. 

3. (2025) Release of Micro- and Nanosized Particles from Plastic Articles during Mechanical Dishwashing | Okoffo, Tscharke & Thomas - This study showed that mechanical dishwashing of plastic items releases micro- and nanoplastics into wastewater, calling for source-control measures. Read the full study here. 

4. Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Dishwashers) Determination 2024 (Cth) - Read the full Determination here.

Human Perspective: 

Chloe lives in a coastal town and works part-time while raising her two young children. Like many families, she tries to carefully recycle, avoids single-use plastics, and teaches her children to respect the ocean they love to swim in every summer. But it wasn’t until she learned about microplastics that she realised the harm that she was inadvertently exposing her family to. Every night, when she loads the dishwasher after dinner, tiny plastic fibres shed from plastic food containers, and synthetic sponges wash straight down the drain, invisible and unfiltered. ​​Over time, Chloe has become increasingly anxious about the impact this is having on her health and the health of marine life. She's read about microplastics being found in seafood, drinking water, and even human blood, and it leaves her feeling uneasy and powerless. She does everything she reasonably can as a consumer. Yet after learning that similar filtration solutions have already been introduced for washing machines, she struggles to understand why dishwashers cannot be addressed in the same way. Chloe believes that if dishwashers were fitted with microplastic filters, responsibility would be shared, ensuring that protecting waterways and future generations is not left solely to individual behaviour, but built into everyday technology. Knowing that systemic solutions were in place would give her a renewed sense of confidence and help her feel a lot better each night, after wrapping up from dinner, as her family presses “start”.

To protect the anonymity of those involved, this is a fictionalised account drawn from an amalgamation of real-life stories, experiences and testimonials gathered during the research process for this brief. Any resemblance to actual individuals is purely coincidental.

Conflict of interest/acknowledgment statement: 

Dr. Elvis D. Okoffo (Research Fellow at the Queensland Alliance for Environmental Health Sciences) confirmed his support for this recommendation in a meeting with FORE Australia held on 10 Dec 2025.

Support 

If your organisation would like to add your support to this paper or suggest amendments, please email Info@foreaustralia.com. 

Disclaimers

Please review all FORE disclaimers here.

Reference list: 

Alva, P. P., & Thomas, T. A. (2025). Microplastics: A global threat to life and living. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 197, Article 1. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-025-14160-w

Australian Marine Conservation Society. (n.d.). Microplastics: Tiny plastics, big problem! https://www.marineconservation.org.au/microplastics/

Clean Ocean Foundation. (2022). Inquiry into plastic pollution in Australia’s oceans and waterways [Submission to the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water]. https://www.aph.gov.au/DocumentStore.ashx?id=268ea020-2d1a-4579-ab11-3fbdbeca0536&subId=730006

Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment. (2021). National plastics plan 2021. Australian Government. https://www.dcceew.gov.au/sites/default/files/documents/national-plastics-plan-2021.pdf

Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (Dishwashers) Determination 2024 (Cth). https://www.legislation.gov.au/F2024L01265/latest/text

Hoang, H. G., Nguyen, N. S. H., Zhang, T., Tran, H.-T., Mukherjee, S., & Naidu, R. (2025). A review of microplastic pollution and human health risk assessment: Current knowledge and future outlook. Frontiers in Environmental Science, 13, Article 1606332. https://doi.org/10.3389/fenvs.2025.1606332

Lee, Y., Cho, J., Sohn, J., & Kim, C. (2023). Health effects of microplastic exposures: Current issues and perspectives in South Korea. Yonsei Medical Journal, 64(5), 301–308. https://doi.org/10.3349/ymj.2023.0048

Liu, Y., Cao, Y., Li, H., Liu, H., Bi, L., Chen, Q., & Peng, R. (2024). A systematic review of microplastics emissions in kitchens: Understanding the links with diseases in daily life. Environment International, 188, Article 108740. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envint.2024.108740

Okoffo, E. D., Tscharke, B. J., & Thomas, K. V. (2023). Predicted growth in plastics entering biosolids and agricultural lands exceeds efforts to control source emissions. ACS ES&T Water, 3(8), 2238–2246. https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsestwater.3c00037

Okoffo, E. D., Tscharke, B. J., & Thomas, K. V. (2025). Release of micro- and nanosized particles from plastic articles during mechanical dishwashing. ACS ES&T Water, 3(8), 2238-2246. https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsestwater.4c00768

Pal, D., Prabhakar, R., Barua, V. B., Zekker, I., Burlakovos, J., Krauklis, A., Hogland, W., & Vincevica-Gaile, Z. (2025). Microplastics in aquatic systems: A comprehensive review of its distribution, environmental interactions, and health risks. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 32, 56–88. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-024-35741-1

Sol Sánchez, D., Menéndez-Manjón, A., Carrasco, S., Crisóstomo-Miranda, J., Laca, A., Laca, A., & Díaz, M. (2023). Contribution of household dishwashing to microplastic pollution. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 30, 45140-45150. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-023-25433-7 

Williams, M., Pham, K., Mulder, R., Pring, N., Hickey, M., & Mardel, J. (2020). Microplastics in wastewater: Quantities and hazards associated with their release into the marine environment. Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. https://www.epa.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/csiro-report-microplastics-in-wastewater.pdf 

Winiarska, E., Jutel, M., & Zemelka-Wiacek, M. (2024). The potential impact of nano- and microplastics on human health: Understanding human health risks. Environmental Research, 251(Pt 2), Article 118535. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2024.118535

Ziajahromi, S., Neale, P. A., Rintoul, L., & Leusch, F. D. L. (2017). Wastewater treatment plants as a pathway for microplastics: Development of a new approach to sample wastewater-based microplastics. Water Research, 112, 93–99. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.watres.2017.01.042