While Princess Kate is refinishing the floors and creating mood boards, Prince William is adding his own improvements to their new home, Forest Lodge. Cameron Walker reported that Prince William “installed Earthshot Prize finalist Matter’s microplastics filters in Forest Lodge, Kensington Palace and Amner Hall.”
“I understand he is keen for the wider Royal Household to follow his example,” Walker said in a post on X. Prince William visited Matter’s headquarters on a trip to Bristol, where he shared that he had the unique devices installed in all of his private homes, and is encouraging his family members to do the same. Matter’s innovative device, designed in collaboration with Bosch, is an external microplastics filter that attaches to washing machines and dryers.
Matter reported that every time we run our washing machine, “hundreds of thousands of microfibers” are washed into the water cycle. “These particles not only contribute to oceanic pollution but also get into our drinking water and food chain,” the brand said. “We end up consuming them daily” through drinking and cooking with microplastic-affected water.
“Microplastic fibres, released into waterways from washing machines in homes through to large-scale textile manufacturing, are the most abundant form of microplastics in the environment,” the brand said. According to the microplastic filter’s listing, the device filters 97% of microplastics every time the machine is run. The device is available in the United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, and other European countries, with more retailers coming soon. To appeal to the average consumer, the microplastic filter retails for £199.
Prince William insisted that the devices, designed for the average domestic laundry rooms, be installed at his private residence. The Prince and Princess of Wales moved into Forest Lodge in November, and have been slowly settling in and making the Georgian-era mansion their own. Princess Kate recently revealed Princess Charlotte’s contributions to the house’s interior design style, so it makes sense that Prince William would want to make his own eco-friendly mark on their family “forever home.”
