Water – Due to poor waste management by the textile industry, 20% of industrial water pollution results from textile treatment and dyes. This water is directly dumped into rivers without any treatment. Certain metals, such as lead and mercury, are released into the river through this process, which is harmful to both aquatic life and humans living along riverbanks.
At the same time, fashion brands are responsible for a large share of global freshwater consumption. While nearly 3.6 billion face the risk of water scarcity, the fashion industry has one of the highest consumption levels, with 200 tons of freshwater needed to dye and finish just one ton of fabric. All this adds up to a significant pressure on water resources.
Microfibers – Microfibers from synthetic clothing are a threat to the environment, entering the food chain and causing problems for aquatic animals. For example, when we wash our clothes, a small number of microfibers are released into the water. In total, 19000 tons of textile microplastic fibers reach the ocean every year.
Microplastics have been found in the digestive systems of numerous marine animals. Through this process, plastics move through the food chain, eventually affecting humans.
Waste Accumulation – Fast fashion produces numerous collections in a short time, which means more and more clothes are thrown away. In developed countries, each family throws away nearly 30 kilograms of clothing every year on average. Only 15% of this gets recycled, while the rest is dumped or burned.
Most of these garments are made of synthetic fibers, which take about 200 years to decompose. When we dispose of these garments, they end up in landfills and pollute the land. Burning them for energy will only harm the air we breathe.
Greenhouse Emission – The fashion industry emits large amounts of greenhouse gases during the production, manufacturing and transportation of garments. It contributes to around 10% of total carbon emissions.
On average, around 23 kg of greenhouse gases are produced for each kilo of fabric produced. Fast fashion brands are the worst offenders, producing the most emissions due to their extreme rate of production. The situation is especially dire in developing countries, where factories use coal for energy, the highest contributor to carbon emissions.
Soil Degradation – Soil degradation refers to the declining quality of soil as a result of improper management during industrial or agricultural processes. Fast-fashion brands play a major role in degrading the quality of soil through various means, including overgrazing in pastures for sheep wool production and massive amounts of chemicals used in cotton farming. Additionally, large rainforests are cut down to plant trees used in the production of wood-based textiles.
Toxins – Textiles are produced using a variety of chemicals in different stages, including washing, bleaching, dyeing, mercerizing, printing, and finishing. If not handled safely, these chemicals in textile production damage the environment as well as the health of workers and consumers.
As per Greenpeace Detox Campaign, 11 chemicals commonly seen in garment production can lead to premature death of factory workers as well as degradation of soil and water bodies. Additionally, sometimes these chemicals also cause skin problems, cancer and hormone disruption for consumers.
