Sustainability LOG 01: From Mass Production To Mass Destruction
by georgina annenberg, brand sustainability expert
image by gregory wikstrom
The fashion industry is producing approximately 100 billion items of clothing annually, with at least 20% going unsold, where they end up being landfilled, incinerated or shredded. We, as consumers, are also buying 60% more clothing than we did in the year 2000, but wearing our clothes for far less time - an average of 7 wears - before throwing them away…
We live in a world of mass production and hyper-consumerism. we have been enticed by extremely low price points, like h&m’s $10 tops and asos’s $38 jeans. but behind every cheap item of clothing is most likely garment worker exploitation and inhumane working conditions, environmental destruction, greenhouse gas emissions, and an abundance of pollution.
This has resulted in 16 million tons of clothing landfilled annually in the US alone. That is almost the same weight as 44 Empire State Buildings! In 2014, the EPA estimated that rubber, leather, and textiles make up more than 9 percent of municipal solid waste in the U.S. and that number has continued to grow.
Not only has the fashion industry created an astronomical amount of man-made waste, it has also significantly contributed to the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. It has been reported that the fashion industry is responsible for 8-10% of the global carbon emissions, which is more than all the shipping and international flights combined.
High water use and water pollution is another factor of concern. According to the Ellen McArthur Foundation, the fashion industry uses 93 billion cubic meters of water annually — enough to meet the consumption needs of five million people.
The production of a single garment, particularly in cotton, can be extreme. For example, it takes 700 gallons of water to make 1 cotton T-shirt. This is equivalent to roughly 41 showers, While nearly 1000 gallons of water is used to make a single pair of jeans, which is the same as 59 showers.
Water used in manufacturing processes has tarnished and drained nearby communities of this vital resource. Commonly employed synthetic textile dyeing is the world’s second largest polluter of water and, according to Fashion Revolution, 70% of rivers in China are polluted from apparel production. Communities are left with undrinkable water sources; poisoned marine life and hazardous chemicals in their environment that can lead to devastating diseases, such as cancer and other neurological problems.
While there are many other environmental atrocities created by the fashion industry, it would be remiss to not detail some of the human rights abuses faced by garment workers. From LA to Bangladesh, garment workers creating fast fashion have to endure strenuous work for long hours and low pay, with only 2% of garment workers being paid a liveable wage. In Bangladesh, where the bulk of fast fashion is produced, garment workers make an average of $0.95 an hour and work for approximately 60 hours per week. Additionally, the True Cost documentary revealed that garment workers are some of the lowest paid workers in the world, with workplace environments that feel like prisons; cramped, aggressively monitored, barred and hot. The majority (80%) of garment workers are women, who are often subjected to verbal and physical abuse, as well as sexual harassment.
While this post is merely scratching the surface, it touches on some of the most pertinent issues of the fashion industry. Fixing these problems will not be easy and will most likely require an entire overhaul of the conventional fashion system, along with combined efforts of multiple stakeholders; from brands, to policymakers, manufactures, to scientists, and of course, you, the consumer.
