‘The textile industry is one of the
biggest GHG emitters on Earth’
The textile industry has a
large carbon footprint, using fossil fuels along the production chain - from
extraction of raw materials to disposal. For instance, a kilogram of fabric
could have a carbon footprint on 12.5kg of CO₂. To put this into perspective, a kilogram of
steel has a carbon footprint of 2kg of CO₂.
This is a pressing environmental
issue, however, as Chris Parkes states
“We’re rapidly increasing the population of
the planet and nobody’s going to be walking around naked”
~ (Thiry,
2011)
So
what do we do about it? Textiles are a massive part of modern life, so to get
rid of them isn’t an option.
Well,
more and more retailers are adopting “ethical agendas” in concern for the
carbon footprint ‘across their entire supply chain’, pushing suppliers to
improve their sustainability (Zaffalon,
2010).
As
a result, the “three Rs” are becoming increasingly important to the textile
industry: REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE.
The
textile industry ‘requires a continuous supply of water’, particularly for the
dyeing process where water is required ‘at temperatures as high as 80°C’ (Muneer
et al., 2006) Using Pakistan as a case study, its climate enables the
adoption of renewable ‘solar water heating’ which can replace methods which ‘consume
considerable energy’ and ‘substantially reduce the environmental impacts’ (Muneer
et al., 2006). Furthermore, ‘waterless and low-water technologies’ are
being developed to reduce the use of the world’s more threatened resource,
water (Thiry,
2011).
 |
| Figure 1) The proportion of freshwater resources on Earth |
But,
what can we do?
Take
a leaf out of Gok Wan’s book: “buy less and wear more”. Try up-cycling our
clothing and refresh our wardrobes that way, donate more to charities to
continue the lifecycles of our belongings.
Check
the labels on clothing! In 2009, the UK fashion retail market introduced the ‘world’s
first carbon footprint label for clothing’, informing us of the total carbon
footprints of items and encouraging us to think and act more ecologically when
shopping AND after purchase (Roos,
2009).
 |
| Figure 2) Example of a Carbon Footprint clothes label |
Perhaps we have the power to
force textiles to step out of the “Dark Side” and into “Green Side”?
Hey Caitlin, interesting post! Do you think that the issue may actually be more with consumers than with the big textile companies? As it stands, industries like the textile industry will always respond to demand, trying to make as much profit as they can. I think the 'reduce' motto here is really important. Consumers need to reduce the amount of new clothes they are buying and that will reduce the amount of raw material consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from the textile industry. We have more than enough clothes already to clothe a growing population - as with many resources the issue seems to be with distribution and unnessecary waste. In Britain we throw away 7 tonnes of clothes every 10 minutes (according to Hugh Fearnely-Whittingstall's recent programme about war on waste)! So I think trying to change the mass-consumerism culture of clothes shopping is really important, and that, yes, as consumers we do have huge power to influence the textiles industry!
ReplyDeleteHi Lucy, thanks so much for your comment!
DeleteYes I understand what you're saying and completely agree, I think that despite efforts of the industry, the ultimate driving force is public demand. I'm glad you agree with my message about consumer power to change the textile industry! In relation to your comment on waste, this is where I think it's so important to donate to charity shops or to get involved with sending clothing to places in poverty etc...
Thanks again for your comment!