To help combat the disaster, Gauthier teamed up with hairstylist Philip McCrory. McCrory had experimented with using hair to absorb grease more than a decade earlier (in 1989). Together, they developed mats and oil barriers made from human hair and animal fur, which Matter of Trust still produces today in its San Francisco warehouse and at local centers in 17 countries.
To date, the organization has produced more than 40,000 hair mats and more than 300,000 paper rolls, according to CNN, and Matter of Trust receives donations by mail; inspects them for contaminants such as debris, dust, and lice; then separates the hair and places it on a frame, which is then fed through a specially made felting machine, resulting in finished wool mats.
Matter of Trust products are used to clean up not only major oil spills, including BP’s Deepwater Horizon in 2010, which dumped more than 160 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico, but also non-emergency situations, such as oil spills from vehicles and equipment. In both cases, oil seeps into the soil and water, harming people, plants, and wildlife, according to Matter of Trust. If one quart of oil gets into a water supply, it can contaminate 1 million gallons of drinking water, the organization says.
While this is a good solution, it is not perfect. For example, hair mats can only be used once and can only be disposed of by burning or composting. The latter method produces compost that is not suitable for growing food. Hair mats are also not very effective at absorbing oil from beach sand, although it is worth noting that polypropylene mats are not much better in this regard.
Still, barber mats are a surprisingly effective tool in the fight for a cleaner planet. Because Matter of Trust hasn’t patented its design, it only needs hair clippings to make the pads, which Gauthier says are plentiful. There are about 900,000 licensed barber shops in the U.S. alone, he says, each of which can cut at least a pound of hair a week.
“Everyone can make a difference,” she told CNN. “It creates green jobs, cleans up water, reduces landfill waste and promotes renewable resources.”