The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks
<p class="first" id="d207098e237">During the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the UK government mandated the use of face masks in various public settings and recommended the use of reusable masks to combat shortages of medically graded single-use mas...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
UCL Press
2021-07-01
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| Series: | UCL Open Environment |
| Online Access: | https://ucl.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.14324/111.444/ucloe.000022 |
| _version_ | 1797896779356700672 |
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| author | Ayşe Lisa Allison Esther Ambrose-Dempster Maria Bawn Miguel Casas Arredondo Charnett Chau Kimberley Chandler Dragana Dobrijevic Teresa Domenech Aparasi Helen C. Hailes Paola Lettieri Chao Liu Francesca Medda Susan Michie Mark Miodownik Beth Munro Danielle Purkiss John M. Ward |
| author_facet | Ayşe Lisa Allison Esther Ambrose-Dempster Maria Bawn Miguel Casas Arredondo Charnett Chau Kimberley Chandler Dragana Dobrijevic Teresa Domenech Aparasi Helen C. Hailes Paola Lettieri Chao Liu Francesca Medda Susan Michie Mark Miodownik Beth Munro Danielle Purkiss John M. Ward |
| author_sort | Ayşe Lisa Allison |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <p class="first" id="d207098e237">During the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the UK government mandated the use of
face masks in various public settings and recommended the use of reusable masks to
combat shortages of medically graded single-use masks in healthcare. To assist decision-making
on the choice of masks for future pandemics, where shortages may not be a contributing
factor, the University College London (UCL) Plastic Waste Innovation Hub has carried
out a multidisciplinary comparison between single-use and reusable masks based on
their anatomy, standalone effectiveness, behavioural considerations, environmental
impact and costs. Although current single-use masks have a higher standalone effectiveness
against bacteria and viruses, studies show that reusable masks have adequate performance
in slowing infection rates of respiratory viruses. Material flow analysis (MFA), life
cycle assessment (LCA) and cost comparison show that reusable masks have a lower environmental
and economic impact than single-use masks. If every person in the UK uses one single-use
mask each day for a year, it will create a total of 124,000 tonnes of waste, 66,000
tonnes of which would be unrecyclable contaminated plastic waste (the masks), with
the rest being the recyclable packaging typically used for transportation and distribution
of masks. Using reusable masks creates >85% less waste, generates 3.5 times lower
impact on climate change and incurs 3.7 times lower costs. Further behavioural research
is necessary to understand the extent and current practices of mask use; and how these
practices affect mask effectiveness in reducing infection rates. Wearing single-use
masks may be preferred over reusable masks due to perceptions of increased hygiene
and convenience. Understanding behaviour towards the regular machine-washing of reusable
masks for their effective reuse is key to maximise their public health benefits and
minimise environmental and economic costs.
</p> |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T07:48:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ec060a0f84ea4684a8c9b523b2019f37 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2632-0886 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T07:48:13Z |
| publishDate | 2021-07-01 |
| publisher | UCL Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | UCL Open Environment |
| spelling | doaj.art-ec060a0f84ea4684a8c9b523b2019f372023-02-23T10:27:24ZengUCL PressUCL Open Environment2632-08862021-07-0134310.14324/111.444/ucloe.000022The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masksAyşe Lisa AllisonEsther Ambrose-DempsterMaria BawnMiguel Casas ArredondoCharnett ChauKimberley ChandlerDragana DobrijevicTeresa Domenech AparasiHelen C. HailesPaola LettieriChao LiuFrancesca MeddaSusan MichieMark MiodownikBeth MunroDanielle PurkissJohn M. Ward<p class="first" id="d207098e237">During the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the UK government mandated the use of face masks in various public settings and recommended the use of reusable masks to combat shortages of medically graded single-use masks in healthcare. To assist decision-making on the choice of masks for future pandemics, where shortages may not be a contributing factor, the University College London (UCL) Plastic Waste Innovation Hub has carried out a multidisciplinary comparison between single-use and reusable masks based on their anatomy, standalone effectiveness, behavioural considerations, environmental impact and costs. Although current single-use masks have a higher standalone effectiveness against bacteria and viruses, studies show that reusable masks have adequate performance in slowing infection rates of respiratory viruses. Material flow analysis (MFA), life cycle assessment (LCA) and cost comparison show that reusable masks have a lower environmental and economic impact than single-use masks. If every person in the UK uses one single-use mask each day for a year, it will create a total of 124,000 tonnes of waste, 66,000 tonnes of which would be unrecyclable contaminated plastic waste (the masks), with the rest being the recyclable packaging typically used for transportation and distribution of masks. Using reusable masks creates >85% less waste, generates 3.5 times lower impact on climate change and incurs 3.7 times lower costs. Further behavioural research is necessary to understand the extent and current practices of mask use; and how these practices affect mask effectiveness in reducing infection rates. Wearing single-use masks may be preferred over reusable masks due to perceptions of increased hygiene and convenience. Understanding behaviour towards the regular machine-washing of reusable masks for their effective reuse is key to maximise their public health benefits and minimise environmental and economic costs. </p>https://ucl.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.14324/111.444/ucloe.000022 |
| spellingShingle | Ayşe Lisa Allison Esther Ambrose-Dempster Maria Bawn Miguel Casas Arredondo Charnett Chau Kimberley Chandler Dragana Dobrijevic Teresa Domenech Aparasi Helen C. Hailes Paola Lettieri Chao Liu Francesca Medda Susan Michie Mark Miodownik Beth Munro Danielle Purkiss John M. Ward The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks UCL Open Environment |
| title | The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks |
| title_full | The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks |
| title_fullStr | The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks |
| title_full_unstemmed | The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks |
| title_short | The impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the UK: a multidisciplinary comparison of single-use masks versus reusable face masks |
| title_sort | impact and effectiveness of the general public wearing masks to reduce the spread of pandemics in the uk a multidisciplinary comparison of single use masks versus reusable face masks |
| url | https://ucl.scienceopen.com/hosted-document?doi=10.14324/111.444/ucloe.000022 |
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