Sustainable Textiles

Introduction

The textiles and fashion industry now accounts for 10% of global annual CO2 emissions – double that caused by aviation and shipping combined. 92 million tonnes of clothes are discarded every year (the equivalent of one rubbish truck a second), much of which is polyester or nylon that will take up to 200 years to biodegrade. Synthetic materials also cause the release of up to half a million tonnes of microplastics into the environment due to shedding microfilaments when being washed [1].  Textile dyeing also now accounts for 20% of global wastewater, and due to much clothing production being in countries with less regulation, water containing toxic chemicals is often released into waterways and the ocean. Textile factories in China alone produce three billion tonnes of soot caused by burning coal for energy, the release of which causes respiratory and heart disease in local people as well as polluting the environment [2].

Alongside all the environmental impacts, garment workers are some of the most exploited in the world with many working up to 96 hours a week with no overtime pay for less than living wage [3]. Workers often work in unsafe factories with no ventilation, inhaling toxic chemicals and fibre dust. Much effort is going into changing people’s attitudes to from using so called ‘fast fashion’ to trying to utilise thrifting, second hand or purchasing high quality long lasting items. However, there is no doubt that clothing production and its detrimental impacts are only increasing in magnitude. So novel ideas and changes are needed to combat the effects of the production, use, recycling and disposal of clothing in order to mitigate it’s environmental and social implications.

Task

Your task is to contribute to a more sustainable way of producing clothing in the fashion industry, leading to possible reductions in environmental impacts and increase in quality of life for people local to and working in factories. You must submit a technical bid for a new process or prototype and show why it is fit for purpose, where it could be useful and why it would contribute to improve the sustainability of textile production, recycling or disposal. You should consider all aspects of the sustainability of your proposed design, as well as the costs and limits associated with it. Will the idea involve a profitable product/process or are other incentives required?

Considerations

·      Specification

What are the forecast demands for clothing in the future and why would your product/process help satisfy this? Think about whether to focus on the production, wear, recycling or disposal of clothing specifically. Also could include reference to water/air quality or waste disposal/recycling specifications and how process would improve on the current level to meet this specification.

·      Technology

Are there any novel technologies/products/materials which are being developed and could be utilised or adapted? Think about what is used currently and how this could be changed, while also thinking about what is available locally.

·      Infrastructure & Safety

How would existing infrastructure have to change? Will it make the environment safer for workers and/or local people?

·      Costings

The costs for set-up should be considered as well as running and material costs. Will the process/product be profitable? Will investors be needed or input from local authorities or governmental initiatives?

·      Sustainability

Sustainability should be considered at every point of your solution. This involves the set-up, production, disposal and decommissioning stages. All aspects of sustainability should be considered eg. implications on workers or local people, local and wider economy and the environment.

References

[1] The 9 Essential Fast Fashion Statistics, Earth.org , July 24, 2022, https://earth.org/fast-fashion-statistics/ [Accessed October 10, 2023]

[2] Encourage Textile Manufacturers to Reduce Pollution, nrdc.org https://www.nrdc.org/issues/encourage-textile-manufacturers-reduce-pollution#:~:text=Textile%20mills%20generate%20one%2Dfifth,by%20burning%20coal%20for%20energy. [Accessed October 10, 2023]

[3] Inhumane Working conditions, sustainyourstyle.org, https://www.sustainyourstyle.org/en/working-conditions [Accessed October 10, 2023]