The textile design industry is deeply integrated into daily life, impacting everyone from the clothes we wear to the bedding we sleep in. As such, sustainability within this industry has become an increasingly pressing topic. With the growing global awareness of environmental and ethical issues, the focus on sustainable practices in textile production particularly in the fashion industry is more significant than ever.
Before we dive into this topic it's important that you understand what the word Sustainability means. By understanding the concept of sustainability, we can evaluate the current practices in textile design production and identify the good, bad, and the outright harmful methods to help improve our environmental sustainability .
Sustainability refers to the practice of meeting current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. It involves the sustainable development of resources to ensure long-term environmental, social, and economic health.
In a broader sense, sustainability focuses on minimizing negative impacts on the environment, promoting practices that conserve natural resources, reduce pollution, and foster social equity and economic development. This includes using renewable resources, reducing waste, and implementing practices that support ecological balance and the well-being of communities.
Apparel textile production
The production of fast fashion is growing and has no signs of stopping the quantity of clothing produced is increasing. This area of textile production is huge. Apparently 430 million people or 12.6 percent of the working world's population work in the fashion clothing and textile production. And the value of the global fashion industry is equivalent to 2 trillion. Dollars.
What is so bad about the production of textiles
The production of textiles, particularly apparel, presents significant environmental challenges, with one of the most pressing issues being the overuse of natural resources, particularly water. The sheer scale of water consumption is staggering. For instance, producing just one cotton T-shirt can require approximately 2,700 liters of fresh water—a volume sufficient to meet an individual's drinking water needs for over two and a half years. When viewed in this context, the scale of water usage in textile production seems overwhelming, especially when multiplied by the number of garments an average person owns.
This extensive water use extends beyond just the cultivation of cotton; the textile sector was identified as the third largest contributor to water degradation and land use as of 2020. Textile production processes, particularly dyeing and finishing, have been estimated to account for about 20% of global clean water pollution. This pollution is caused by untreated wastewater containing toxic chemicals, dyes, and heavy metals being discharged into water bodies, leading to severe environmental and health impacts.
In addition to water usage and pollution, synthetic fabrics like polyester present another grave concern: microplastic pollution. When polyester clothing is washed, it releases tiny synthetic fibers known as microplastics. A single load of polyester laundry can discharge up to 700,000 microplastic fibers, which are not captured by standard wastewater treatment facilities and often make their way into rivers, oceans, and eventually, the food chain. This contributes to the estimated half a million tons of microplastics entering the oceans each year. The accumulation of these fibers in marine ecosystems has devastating effects on sea life, causing ingestion-related issues, toxic buildup, and disruptions to marine biodiversity.
The combination of overusing water resources and contributing to microplastic pollution highlights the urgent need for sustainable solutions within the textile industry. This includes adopting innovative water-saving technologies, developing biodegradable and eco-friendly materials, improving wastewater treatment, and encouraging responsible consumer behaviour to mitigate the environmental impact of textile production.
The environmental impact of textile production extends beyond water consumption and microplastic pollution—it significantly contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, affecting both the air we breathe and the overall climate. According to the European Environment Agency, textile purchases within the EU alone were responsible for generating around 270 kg of CO2 emissions per person in 2020. This contributed to an astonishing 121 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions across the EU, illustrating the substantial carbon footprint of textile production and consumption.
The production phase involves processes like fibre production, spinning, weaving, dyeing, and finishing—all of which require high energy inputs, often derived from fossil fuels. The transportation and distribution of textiles further exacerbate carbon emissions. Synthetic fabrics, such as polyester, are especially problematic as they are derived from petroleum, a non-renewable resource, and their production emits more carbon compared to natural fibres.
Fashion's Fast Cycle: One troubling aspect of modern textile consumption is the rapid turnover of fashion trends, which encourages a culture of disposability. People tend to buy more garments at a lower cost, wear them fewer times, and discard them quickly as trends change. The way in which unwanted clothes are disposed of has shifted, with an increasing amount being thrown away instead of being donated, reused, or recycled. This leads to massive amounts of textiles ending up in landfills, where synthetic fabrics can take decades or even centuries to decompose, releasing harmful chemicals and contributing to landfill methane emissions.
Recycling and Reuse: Less than half of used clothing is currently collected for reuse or recycling. This low rate can be attributed to various factors, including limited infrastructure, inadequate collection systems, and low consumer awareness. The challenge of recycling textiles stems from the complexity of garments, which often combine multiple types of fibres, dyes, and other materials that complicate the recycling process. Until recently, technological limitations made it difficult to recycle clothes into new fibres efficiently.
However, advancements in technology are now enabling more effective recycling methods that can transform old garments into new fibres, helping reduce waste and conserve resources. Processes such as chemical recycling can break down complex textiles into reusable raw materials. Still, despite these advances, the adoption of large-scale textile recycling remains slow and underdeveloped.
Sustainable Solutions Needed: Can We Achieve Truly Sustainable Fashion Products?
The question of whether sustainable fashion products are truly attainable is complex, but the answer lies in a collective push toward change across all levels of the industry and society. While achieving full sustainability in fashion is challenging, significant progress can be made through systemic shifts and innovative practices. New business models in Europe are being introduce to the fashion industry and positive steps are being taken to protect our natural resources. Here are essential strategies for moving towards more sustainable fashion :
Promoting a Circular Economy
sustainable development :A circular economy aims to minimize waste and make the most of resources by creating products that can be reused, repurposed, or recycled. To achieve this:
- Design for Longevity: Garments should be designed with durability in mind, using quality materials and construction techniques that allow for extended use.
- Recyclable and Biodegradable Materials: Incorporating materials that can be recycled or naturally decompose can reduce the impact of discarded clothing. Natural materials like organic cotton and biodegradable materials made from innovations like mushroom leather or bio-based polyester are promising start to produce new textiles.
- Closed-Loop Systems for recycled materials: Implement processes where materials from old garments are recovered and reused to create new products, minimizing textile waste.
Improving Recycling Technologies
Current recycling practices often fall short due to the complexity of separating different types of fibres and materials. Advancing technology to produce sustainable materials can help by:
- Developing Advanced Sorting Techniques: Using AI and machine learning to automate the sorting of textiles based on fibre type and color.
- Chemical Recycling Innovations: Implementing methods that break down textiles into raw components, allowing them to be reused without a significant drop in quality. These technologies can help recycle blended fabrics, which have traditionally been difficult to process.
- Scaling Up Infrastructure: Building more facilities equipped with advanced recycling technology to handle the growing volume of discarded garments to minimize textile waste .
Consumer Education
Empowering consumers with knowledge is vital for fostering sustainable habits:
- Promoting Conscious Consumption: Educating people on buying less but choosing better quality garments that last longer, as well as encouraging practices like renting, swapping, or second-hand shopping.
- Transparent Labelling: Providing clear information on a product’s environmental impact, from production to disposal, can help consumers make informed choices.
- Awareness Campaigns: Using social media, workshops, and campaigns to highlight the environmental costs of fast fashion and the benefits of sustainable practices and working on sustainable production.
Legislative Measures
Government policies can significantly influence how the fashion industry operates:
- Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR): Laws that make manufacturers responsible for the end-of-life of their products, encouraging them to design with recyclability in mind and invest in collection and recycling programs.
- Tax Incentives: Providing benefits to companies that adopt sustainable practices, such as using eco-friendly materials or reducing carbon emissions.
- Mandatory Recycling: Implementing rules that require textile collection and recycling programs to be established in communities and by companies.
Achieving Sustainable Fashion: A Shared Responsibility
While complete sustainability may be difficult to reach, combining these approaches can lead to meaningful progress. The fashion industry needs to collaborate with governments, technology innovators, and consumers to move towards an environmentally and socially responsible model. This collective effort can help transition from a linear, waste-heavy system to a circular, resource-efficient one.
The journey toward sustainable fashion is ongoing, but by adopting these practices and continually innovating, the industry can make significant strides toward reducing its environmental footprint.
Addressing these challenges requires collaboration between manufacturers, governments, and consumers to create a more sustainable and environmentally friendly textile industry.
