Fashion's Carbon Footprint: Addressing Textile Waste and Sustainability

Globally, 92 million tons of textile waste are produced each year by the fashion industry with only about an eighth of the materials undergoing recycling processes. ?With an increasing push to prioritize zero-waste production practices, apparel should not be exempt. Fabric waste, dye pollution, and carbon emissions are only a few of the consequences of the industry’s current production model. There are numerous opportunities to enhance sustainability within the textiles sector. Nature is a major player in the fashion industry, as discussed during last year’s Climate Week panel from WWF. It is important to identify adaptation solutions for the apparel sector as fashion is the third highest global producer of greenhouse gas emissions. The fashion/textiles industry has the potential and scale to incorporate practices that ensure climate mitigation.

Fast fashion & its climate impact

Waste created by the fashion industry is a significant component in the climate crisis, accounting for about 8-10% of global CO2 emissions. Fast fashion companies focus on producing clothing at a higher quantity in various styles while sacrificing structural integrity and quality of their products. This massively increases the amount of clothing being purchased, and the frequency at which it is discarded, contributing to textile waste. This business model creates major fabric buildup in landfills - much of the discarded material ends up clogging landfills and coastlines in places like Ghana.

Additionally, many of these fast fashion driven factories amplify CO2 emissions and water pollution from the toxic chemicals created as a byproduct of their dyeing and production processes. A study from 2021 identified factories making fast fashion clothes in Lesotho and Tanzania as the source of water pollution that turned rivers blue and rendered the water a similar pH to bleach.

For many of these companies, so long as they are turning a profit, their environmental impact is a secondary consideration. However, there are those in the industry who are beginning to make progress in curbing their emissions, using both scientific advances and making adjustments to the fast fashion model .

What progress is being made?

Fabric is a tricky medium to successfully recycle. Though it can be repurposed to create materials such as insulation or stuffing , these efforts are usually small in scale. In a recent article by The Washington Post, researchers at the University of Delaware have formulated a new technique to recycle textile fibers, allowing them to be reused and diverted from landfills.? Though intended as a last resort, this research confirms that it is possible to work towards a more sustainable future in fashion with less waste. Such sustainably minded research and inquiry is needed at every point in the life cycle of the fashion industry, from the creation of material in the supply chain through the purchase process and in the post-consumer phase.

The environmental issues brought on by the fashion industry have garnered the attention of policymakers, eager to spur the industry to action. The United Nations, for example, has outlined a charter specifically dedicated to integrating sustainable practices into the apparel manufacturing industry. Launched in 2018, the Fashion Industry Charter for Climate Action commits to industry-wide climate action under United Nations Climate Change framework, prioritizing the pursuit of Science Based Targets. Major fashion labels have already joined as signatories, aiming to reduce carbon emissions over a set period, eventually seeking to reach the Charter’s ultimate net-zero vision by 2050.

Driving personal and community-based change

Supporting and engaging with large-scale initiatives focusing on textile recycling is great, but what can we do at a local or personal level? You play a role in this system as a consumer in the fashion industry as well. If you’ve noticed that you’re often discarding clothing, consider investing in pieces made of a higher quality that you’ll keep in your closet longer. ?Or better yet – learn to mend your clothing to extend the lifespan of your garments. Secondhand shopping is also growing in popularity and donating your old clothes and purchasing “new-to-you" clothes is a great way to give clothing items a second life. You can expand the impact of your zero-waste activity in your community by hosting a local clothing swap or upcycling your wardrobe at home. Awareness and adaptability are necessary aspects of climate action; by engaging in zero-waste and environmentally mindful practices, individuals can collectively influence change at a larger scale. If we want to see a reduction in textile waste and pollution, we call upon the fashion industry to implement and adopt a cleaner business model to contribute to a more livable future for people and nature. At the end of the day, we can all do our part – from individuals to large companies - to make the change and prioritize sustainability.