Clothing piles
Posted on by GW Environmental and Energy Law

Fast Fashion: Polluting our Water Millions of Clothing Items at a Time

By Vanessa Turk

What is fast fashion and why is it a problem? 

“Fast fashion” refers to the business model of mass-producing replicas of the latest clothing trends and designs at a low cost and selling them rapidly in stores while the demand is at its highest. This objective of helping consumers acquire the latest in fashion trends comes at a huge environmental price, however. Overconsumption of water and water pollution are two of the most concerning forms of environmental harm that fast fashion imposes on the environment. These impacts from fast fashion need to be addressed effectively and quickly through new accountability mechanisms and possible systemic changes in the fast fashion industry.

The fashion industry is the second biggest consumer of water after agriculture, followed by the energy, meat, beverage, construction, mining, and car industries. According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), it is also responsible for producing 20% of wastewater worldwide.

Environmental havoc by the fast fashion industry

Cotton is the most commonly used natural fiber in the fashion industry, and cotton farming has a significant impact on the global water crisis. In order to produce a single cotton shirt, about 700 gallons of water are needed. Farmers’ use of fertilizers and toxic chemicals to produce cotton also severely contaminates water and has harmful effects on ecosystems. 

This problem is particularly vexing because the United States is the world’s third largest cotton producer after China and India. 

Textile dyeing and finishing is also a major contributor to the industry’s water pollution impacts. In fact, this process is responsible for over 20 percent of global industrial water pollution because of the toxic and hazardous chemicals used. 

Another major environmental problem that the fast fashion industry causes is plastic waste and microfiber pollution from the use of synthetic textiles to produce cheap clothing items that contaminate water sources. In fact, wastewater from the production of synthetic textiles releases arsenic, benzene, lead, and other toxic waste into water sources.

Proposed solutions and their risks and challenges

One potential solution to these water pollution and overuse problems is the use of sustainable materials in the manufacturing process. For instance, organic hemp and organic linen are alternative materials that are biodegradable and sustainable and can be used in fashion items. Other options are “Piñatex,” which is a vegan leather created using fibers from pineapple leaves without the use of harmful chemicals; “Econyl®,” which is a fiber made from recovered waste from the ocean such as plastics and fishing nets; and “ECOVERO™,” a sustainable semi-synthetic fiber that requires 50% less water use than traditional viscose while meeting the highest environmental standards. 

Fashion companies can also engage in manufacturing garments using deadstock fabrics, which are the leftovers of fabrics from other fashion companies. Instead of discarding these leftover fabrics in landfills, zero waste companies and upcycled fashion brands rescue the fabrics and turn them into unique garments. 

This transition to sustainable materials could present a risk of greenwashing by big fashion companies who want consumers to perceive them as eco-friendly when in reality they are not. This is why transparency is vital in order to achieve this transition. Technology that records every phase of a clothing item’s life using QR codes could be helpful to track the materials used, the manufacturing practices, the environmental conditions under which the product was made, and the chemicals used. 

Transitioning to sustainable fashion materials is a challenge, however. These materials are generally more expensive because organic fabrics are often grown by a limited number of certified growers without the use of pesticides, fertilizers, and GMOs, and these growers are governed by a strict set of government guidelines and regulations. Due to the limited supply and the high demand, sustainable fashion is costly. 

Plant-based substitutes for plastic are increasingly available. The fashion industry has been specifically experimenting with bioplastics, which are made by replacing petroleum for natural and renewable raw materials such as sugarcane, castor beans, corn, and sugar beets. Bioplastics are biodegradable and compostable, which means that they can naturally break down in a matter of months. 

Sustainable cotton farming would also be a major step forward towards a more environmentally friendly fashion industry. For example, switching to organic cotton farming can possibly save 218 billion liters of water, and reduce pollution by refraining from the use of fertilizers and pesticides. Also, consumers would likely buy from retailers who sell reasonably produced products that use certified organic cotton by looking for the GOTS label (Global Organic Textile Standard), which means that no toxic and harmful fertilizers or pesticides were used. Brands like Patagonia and North Face are manufacturing clothes using cotton grown without the use of pesticides or fertilizers. 

Another challenge is the limited availability of the sustainable fashion materials. There is a limited variety of organic materials and finite access to certain fabrics. Nevertheless, with the right scientific research more options for sustainable resources can be developed. 

Call to action for consumers and fashion companies

Consumers must also make more conscious choices by buying clothing items made with sustainable and natural materials. They could also invest in quality garments that are durable and do not go out of style quickly and repair them or donate them after use instead of discarding them. This change in consumer behavior is not easy without the encouragement of environmentally friendly behavior through education and marketing strategies, and these environmentally friendly choices must be easily accessible to consumers and cost-efficient. 

Companies should also strive to reduce their negative impact on the environment by, among other things, reducing their use of water and its contamination, and by focusing on producing quality garments that stay in style longer in order to reduce production and consumption.

Companies could also engage in circular economy practices and refrain from discarding clothing items that they could not sell or that went out of style. This would involve reusing, sharing, refurbishing, repairing, recycling, and remanufacturing; creating a closed system while reducing the production of waste, the pollution, and the emissions; and reducing the consumption of finite resources. 

Much work remains to ensure a more sustainable and eco-conscious fast fashion industry. Both the manufacturing companies and the consumers must be actively engaged in making small changes and improvements that can help limit the fast fashion industry’s extensive environmental impacts. 

Sources:

Vanessa Turk

Vanessa completed her LL.M. in Intellectual Property Law at the George Washington University Law School in May 2023.

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