The hidden impact of seeing the world clearly – what happens to your contact lenses when you bin them?

How big of a problem is it? 

While specific Australian research on contact lens disposal habits is limited, data from the US provides insight into potential environmental impacts with a study finding that 21% of American contact lens wearers flush their used lenses down the drain. 

This results in an estimated 42,300 to 45,700 kilograms of contact lenses entering wastewater annually.  

With between 250 to 500 million contact lens packages sent to landfill each year in Australia, you can see how applying these findings would suggest a significant environmental concern.

Why flushing is a fail 

Because they’re tiny, flexible and often mixed in with other waste, contact lenses aren’t easy or able to be recycled through standard household systems, which proves problematic for a couple of reasons. 

Firstly, when contacts are improperly flushed down sinks or toilets, they add to the growing microplastic pollution in our waterways (so please ensure these are placed in the bin). 

Beyond the lenses themselves, their packaging is currently non-recyclable through kerbside collection and will contribute to landfill waste through traditional rubbish disposal methods.

Microplastics and marine life 

Once in the water system, contact lenses degrade into microplastics (tiny fragments that are notoriously difficult to remove).  

These microplastics can: 

• Be ingested by fish and marine life, entering the food chain 
• Absorb harmful chemicals, contaminating ecosystems
• Persist for decades, since plastic takes hundreds of years to break down completely 

A recent analysis titled  No Plastic in Nature: Assessing Plastic Ingestion from Nature to People, which was based on a study commissioned by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and carried out by University of Newcastle, suggests people are consuming about 2000 pieces of microplastic every week (i.e. about the size of a credit card).  

This equates to more than a quarter of a kilogram of microplastics being ingested each year.

So, what can you do? 

Unlike standard plastic packaging, contact lenses and their blister packs are made from complex materials, making them tricky to recycle through regular curbside bins.  

Programs like Opticycle are making a real difference in cutting down waste and promoting sustainable eye care. 

Created by The Activ Group and PanelCycle, Opticycle provides a simple, effective way to recycle frames, lenses and contact lens packaging. 

So, what can you do? 

Unlike standard plastic packaging, contact lenses and their blister packs are made from complex materials, making them tricky to recycle through regular curbside bins.  

Programs like Opticycle are making a real difference in cutting down waste and promoting sustainable eye care. 

Created by The Activ Group and PanelCycle, Opticycle provides a simple, effective way to recycle frames, lenses and contact lens packaging. 

How do you access Opticycle’s recycling program? 

You can order recycling boxes or satchels from the Opticycle website, which are then collected and processed to ensure every material is repurposed responsibly. Alternatively, you can drop them off in store at optometrist locations who participate in the program 

Using advanced recycling technology, Opticycle transforms plastic and metal components into valuable resources, with a fully transparent, traceable process from start to finish.