Fashion’s Impact

There is a lot to understand about fashion’s environmental impact and unfortunately, the information available isn’t always straight forward. One of the many problems facing the fashion industry is misinformation. It seems that the statistics regarding the fashion industry’s carbon footprint tend to vary significantly, depending on the source. This misinformation problem hinders efforts needed to persuade fashion companies to act. And they do need to act. Despite the lack of firm numbers, it is indisputable that most of the fashion industry is a major contributor to air and water pollution, creates exorbitant amounts of waste, uses dangerous amounts of water, and relies heavily on cheap labor and the exploitation of garment workers. By now you may have seen the horrible images of the mountain of unsold clothing in the Chilean Desert. Or perhaps you’ve heard of rivers in Africa being “bleached” by chemicals from nearby textile factories. Fashion companies rarely take responsibility for these outrageous headlines. But we as consumers can take responsibility for our purchases by understanding our clothes and how they impact the world around us.

Over-production and waste: Fast Fashion does its very best to meet the changing demands of their customers. One fast fashion retailer is known for a quick production process in which it can design, produce and deliver a garment within 2 weeks. It designs over 10,000 pieces a year which ends in the production of about 450 million garments. Another well known fast fashion retailer follows a different model, but produces over 3 billion garments a year. That’s a lot of cheap clothes from just two retailers. Whatever cannot be sold ends up in landfills or destroyed. Many companies, including high-end luxury retailers, have come under fire in recent years for destroying their unsold goods. Instead of producing less, it seems to be better business to burn or throw away items that did not sell to make room for the new, starting the cycle over again.

Synthetics and microplastics: It is estimated that more than half of apparel produced today is made from non-biodegradable, synthetic materials such as polyester, acrylic and nylon. These synthetics, derived from petroleum, are basically wearable plastic that when washed release tiny particles called “mircoplastics” into wastewater. These microplastics are destined for the ocean and are being digested by marine life. Polyester is the most common synthetic material used for clothes. It is inexpensive to produce and durable, making it a desirable fabric for fashion manufacturers. Recycled polyester is an eco-friendlier option and is being used more and more by many retailers, but still sheds harmful microplastics when washed.

Donating and Recycling: Elizabeth Cline uses the term “Clothing Deficit Myth” in her book to describe the idea that all of the clothing that we continually buy can be donated to charities and put in the hands of people who need them. The truth is, charitable organizations where we have faithfully donated our clothes are overwhelmed with unwanted clothing, most of which ends up overseas for the second hand trade or as recycled fibers. This cycle, however, does not guarantee that textile waste is kept from landfills. In simple terms, we are shipping our waste problem to other countries. While consumers with good intentions donate their unwanted garments, the EPA estimates that only about 15% of textile waste is recycled, leaving the rest to go to landfills. In 2018 alone, that textile waste was over 17 million tons in the United States.

Social Impact: The fashion industry’s impact affects us all. But, the most impacted are by far the people who actually make the clothes.

Three major disasters involving garment factories finally brought much needed attention to the conditions in which millions of workers have had to endure. In 2012 a factory in Bangladesh in which doors had been padlocked to prevent workers from leaving early, caught fire and killed 117 people. That same year in Pakistan, two factories in two separate cities caught fire on the same day, killing almost 300. Both buildings had just one exit. The deadliest of the two was in Karachi where the windows had been barred and the people who were in the basement suffocated because they had no means of escape.

The Accord was a legally binding contract ensuring the safety of Bangladeshi garment workers in 1,600 factories. When it expired in May of 2021, a new International Accord was forged, bringing the promise of building safety to other countries. As of September 2021 only 91 companies have signed.

While building safety remains an issue for garment workers, the working conditions inside many factories are notoriously perilous. Verbal abuse and bullying are common in garment factories and are used as a tactic to ensure production targets are met. There are also troubling reports of physical abuse by guards or supervisors over mistakes made by employees. Sexual harassment based on gender from superiors is commonplace in this industry with 80% of garment workers being female. Complaints of mistreatment or unions formed to protect workers are typically not tolerated. Further abuse, humiliation or dismissal discourages employees who rely on their income from speaking out. Child labor and forced labor are still a problem in poorer countries. The International Labor Organization estimates that over 160 million children are engaged in child labor. Much of this child labor is used in all stages of fashion’s supply chain, making it difficult to control.

Many garment workers are expected to work over 14 hour days in order to meet targets and deadlines. We think that factory workers earning minimum wage is a standard that they can live with. This usually isn’t the case, hence the term “living wage”. A living wage is considered the minimum amount an individual needs to survive (think health care, housing, food, school, transportation and savings). In countries where the majority of our clothes are made, minimum wage is considerably less than a living wage. For example, in a report by the Clean Clothes Campaign, the Bangladesh minimum wage is roughly six times less than the Bangladesh living wage. This report also highlights some of the abuses suffered by garment workers at the hands of their superiors. Long working hours in grave conditions for what could be considered poverty wages is quite simply inhumane.

The Covid-19 pandemic exacerbated the problems facing garment workers. The same report mentioned above shows wage theft from garment workers in 2020 after orders had been cancelled and payments delayed by major retailers.

What can we do? We as consumers have the power to make big changes. Buying better quality items and buying them less often lowers the demand for overproduction. Paying attention to what our clothes are made of and how to care for them lowers the amount of nonbiodegradable textiles sent to landfills. Resisting fleeting trends and absolutely loving what you buy will make a huge difference in your wardrobe. You’ll look and feel much better and this rule of thumb will lead to cultivating your “own style”. Finding a local tailor who can mend your favorite pieces keeps them in your closet longer and is usually worth the expense.