Pollution from the Textile/Fashion Industry
Affects the Entire Planet.
The textile fashion industry causes widespread pollution and environmental problems on land, sea, rivers and air.
There is no place on earth that is not affected by this industry.
Soil Contamination
Deforestation, large-scale cultivation, and the use of chemical substances such as pesticides and insecticides to obtain cotton, which is the raw material for yarn, are destroying the habitats of animals and plants.
Water Pollution
Many wastewaters from the textile dyeing and processing industry contain large amounts of toxic chemicals. These effluents pollute rivers and seas.
Carbon Emissions
The textile and fashion industry accounts for 10% of the world's carbon emissions, which is higher than that of the air and shipping industries, which are one of the leading runners in the CO2 emission problem.
Harmful Chemicals
The large amount of chemicals used in clothing manufacturing threatens humans and ecosystems.
The Process by which
Clothing Suits are Made is a
Long Journey of Environmental Destruction.
From yarn production to dyeing and sewing to the consumption of the finished garment,
clothing causes enormous environmental damage.
Cultivation of Cotton
In order to grow cotton, which accounts for about 25% of clothing material, indiscriminate deforestation for the composition of cultivated land occurs, and a huge amount of agricultural water is used.
About 20,000 liters of water is used to grow 1 kg of cotton, and 10% of the amount of chemical substances used in agriculture and 25% of pesticides are used in cotton cultivation, seriously polluting the soil, groundwater, and river.
Synthetic Fibers
In the case of polyester, which accounts for more than half of the fibers used in fashion products, there are issues with the use of chemicals and energy in the manufacturing process.
In addition, more than 30 million liters of oil is used daily in the US to make polyester fibers. This emits more than twice as much carbon as cotton fiber process.
Dyeing and Processing
Fabrics made from cotton, polyester, etc. go through dyeing and processing processes to add color and make them feel better.
In this process, many kinds of chemicals are used to produce vivid colors, and dyeing is done at high temperatures of 100-130 degrees Celsius.
Of the 15,000 or so chemicals used in the textile industry, a small number are hazardous/toxic, resulting in toxic chemical wastewater and polluting rivers, soils and seas.
Packaging
After the dyeing process is complete, the fabric is sewn together with various secondary materials to create a full-fledged garment, wrapped in a polyester bag, and refurbished so that it can be sold to consumers.
Wrapping paper and hangtags that consumers immediately discard their clothing purchases are added in this process.
Laundry Issues
In the process of wearing clothes, every time chemical fibers such as polyester are washed, the fine fibers on the surface always come off and flow into rivers and seas through sewers.
Approximately 50,000 microscopic plastic particles are generated in one wash.
It is estimated that as much as 35% of microplastic pollution in the ocean occurs during laundry.
Clothing Waste
95% of the clothing is asleep in the closet, and it takes an average of three and a half years for the purchased clothes to be thrown away.
In places such as Africa, "clothes graves" made by accumulating clothing waste may be formed to lengths of tens of meters.
Even after being discarded, synthetic fibers such as polyester remain intact for at least several decades, and chemical substances remaining after use during the dyeing and processing process seep out and contaminate the soil.
There are Still Many Constraints for the
Textile Fashion Industry Supply Chain
to be Fully Sustainable.
Currently, most environmentally friendly textile technologies are concentrated in the materials segment,
and the environmental problems of the rest of the process are still serious.
There is also the issue of "greenwashing", which is false eco-friendly marketing.
Eco-Friendly Textile Technology that Concentrates only on Materials:
Most eco-friendly textile technologies are limited to eco-friendly materials for fashion products.
Even upcycling products actually only prolong the time between use and disposal. In other words, once these products were thrown away, it was difficult to upcycle them again.
Green-Washing
Greenwashing refers to "fake environmentalism" that advertises things as if they are environmentally friendly, even though they are not really.
It is the promotion of products and technologies that have no or lack of eco-friendly benefits as if they are sustainable, with the aim of encouraging consumers to prefer eco-friendly products.
The Dyeing Industry, the Biggest Polluter, Should Become Sustainable.
The dyeing industry causes the most pollution in the textile fashion supply chain.
If synthetic dye-based chemical dyeing processes are replaced with eco-friendly dyeing technology,
we are one step closer to completing a sustainable textile supply chain.
Synthetic Dyes
Synthetic dyes are produced by reacting various chemical substances with benzene extracted during the distillation process of petroleum as the main material. We also add various kinds of chemical additives to improve the color development during the dyeing process.
The modern dyeing industry uses over 8,000 chemicals. Synthetic dyes produce the most toxic wastewater in the chemical industry, and chemical dye-related wastewater exhibits ecotoxicity values that are 10 to 20 times higher than fertilizer and metal industry wastewater.
Hazardous Wastewater
Hazardous chemical wastewater generated during dyeing pollutes rivers and seas.
In particular, organic chemicals in wastewater discharged into rivers cause a rapid increase in the number of microorganisms, resulting in a lack of oxygen and causing mass mortality of fish.
These dyeing wastewaters account for 20% of the world's industrial wastewater.
CO₂ Emissions
The manufacturing process for synthetic dyes is a petroleum-based, carbon-based process that releases huge amounts of carbon due to chemical reactions.
Furthermore, the process of keeping the water required for dyeing at a high temperature uses a lot of energy, resulting in a lot of CO2 emissions.
Skin Irritation Problem
Some of the chemicals used in the dyeing process remain in the fabric and are released as clothing products.
When worn, it affects the wearer's body and causes skin inflammation.
Contamination of Waste Clothing
Some of the chemicals left in the fabric are contaminated even after disposal.
Toxic inorganic chemicals do not decompose into microorganisms, polluting the soil and destroying nature.
Chemical Additives Problem
In the chemical dyeing process, in addition to synthetic dyes, various chemical additives are added to improve cleaning and dyeing quality.
More than 8,000 chemicals are used in the modern dyeing industry.
Chemical additives make it difficult to clean up wastewater, making it more energy and resources available for wastewater treatment.
OUR SOLUTION
Sustainable Dyeing Using Biomass Dyes is Essential for the Planet.
Replacing chemicals with natural materials means
more than just green in terms of sustainability.
From reducing pollutant emissions from dyes and manufacturing processes to reducing CO2 emissions,
we present sustainable solutions for the dyeing industry.