Organic cotton. Organic cotton is a natural, renewable and biodegradable fibre. It benefits cotton producers and the environment in developing countries by avoiding the harmful effects of toxic pesticides, and the reduced cost of production improves social conditions. Consumers in the UK also benefit from garments that are manufactured without the use of thousands of toxic and carcinongenic chemicals. By contrast the non-organic cotton industry is a huge source of global environmental pollution, using almost 16% of all insecticides, social conditions for cotton growers can be poor, with poverty, health problems and suicide common, and thousands of chemicals are used to turn raw material into clothes, towels, bedding and other items that we put next to our skin every day. Organic cotton provides the following benefits: It's better for the farm environment.
Organic fibres are grown without the use of synthetic fertilisers or toxic pesticides. It's better for workers in the developing world. It avoids GM. Primark linked to UK sweatshops. Undercover filming of workers at the TNS factory Factory workers making clothes destined for fashion chain Primark work up to 12 hours a day for £3.50 an hour, an undercover BBC investigation has found. Supplier TNS Knitwear was also found to be employing illegal workers in poor conditions at its Manchester factory. TNS has denied all the claims. Primark says it is "extremely concerned" and is carrying out its own investigation. Primark is best known for its cheap fashion clothing and bucked the trend on Britain's high street last year to make a £233m profit.
On its website, it claims to deliver fast fashion without breaking its ethical code or exploiting its workers, but the BBC has uncovered evidence that shows some of its manufacturers are doing so. In a statement, the company said: "The apparent practices shown in today's BBC News broadcasts are a matter of great concern. " Under pressure An unrepaired toilet meant workers of both sexes were sharing one set of toilets. Sewing labels. Cotton and Water | Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF)
Cotton is one of the thirstiest crops in the world, taking about 2,720 litres of water to produce one cotton T-shirt, equivalent to what an average person might drink over three years. Consumption of cotton products represents 2.6% of the global water footprint of consumed goods and services. 80% of the total EU water footprint is located outside Europe in countries such as China, Pakistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. In 2008, 2,890 billion litres of water was used in Pakistan to grow the cotton needed just to make products sold by the homestore Ikea – equivalent to the volume of drinking water consumed in Sweden over 176 years.
More than 70% of global cotton is produced using irrigation and 15-35% of all irrigation withdrawals are estimated to be unsustainable. The environmental and social impacts of unsustainable cotton production are perhaps most clearly demonstrated by the demise of the Aral Sea in Central Asia. Left to right: Aral Sea 1989, Aral Sea 2009 Watch EJF's films: Defra, UK - Science Search. Description Textile recycling economics are already fragile due to difficulties in end markets, both for clothing and for recycling grades (rags). These problems are forecast to intensify with the increased import penetration of very low cost Chinese-produced clothing at the cessation of the Multi-Fibre Agreement, which imposes quotas on developing country textile imports to the developed world. It will also impact on the overseas markets for second hand clothing, driving down quality and hence prices. This proposal integrates an economic study of the used clothing recycling industry with market and technological development aimed at improving the markets for recycling grades of clothing, which are currently heavily loss-making.
The market development study will base itself on technical work already partly established at Leeds University. Textiles make up around 2%-4% of the domestic waste stream collected as MSW, depending on availability of clothing collection schemes. TRA - Textile Recycling Association - Clothes and Rags Recycling. Companies representing more than a third of UK clothing sales have signed up to a commitment to measure and report the environmental ‘footprint’ of clothing throughout its life, and to take action to reduce the impact.
High street retailers, charities, recyclers and other major players in the clothing sector are among those who have already signed the SCAP 2020 Commitment, and others are expected to follow over the coming weeks. To help organisations measure their overall carbon, water and waste footprints, WRAP, on behalf of the Sustainable Clothing Action Plan (SCAP), has developed a spreadsheet-based ‘footprint’ calculator. This tool, for the first time, will enable companies to quantify and report the total global impacts of the clothes they make, sell and recover, in a consistent way. This baseline data for 2012 will enable the signatories not only to identify and agree targets for carbon, water and waste savings, to be delivered by 2020, but also to identify ‘next steps’.
Facts and Figures about clothes collections | Clothes Aid. Environmental facts The energy required to collect, process and sell a reused item of clothing is only 2 per cent of the energy required to manufacture a new garment. 1 The clothing and textile sector in the UK is responsible for more than 3 million tonnes of CO2 emissions. 1 Annually the UK consumes 2.16 million tonnes of clothing and textile products and spends approximately £38.4 billion on clothing. 2 Of the textiles that are discarded to the householder waste bin, nationally 43% is reusable. 2 Approximately 1.5 to 2 million tonnes of clothing and textile waste is generated in the UK each year, of which 1.2 million tonnes (63%) is currently disposed of to landfill. 2 2 million tonnes of textile waste (inc. clothing, carpets and footwear) is generated annually (of which approx 1 million is clothing). 2 24% (523k tonnes) is collected for reuse and recycling in the UK and overseas. 2 1.
Bogus clothes collections 1. Recycling | Ethical Fashion Forum. Recycling It is estimated that more than 1 million tonnes of textiles are thrown away every year in the UK alone. At least 50% of the textiles we throw away are recyclable, however, the proportion of textile wastes reused or recycled annually in the UK is only around 25%. Recovery and recycling provide important environmental benefits. Textile recovery: Reduces the need for landfill space.
If everyone in the UK bought one reclaimed woollen garment each year, it would save an average of 371 million gallons of water (the average UK reservoir holds about 300 million gallons) and 480 tonnes of chemical dyestuffs. Many fashion businesses are choosing to incorporate recycled fibres, fabrics or clothes in their collections. Consumers can also contribute by recycling , re-fashioning and re-styling existing clothes, swapping clothes with friends or choosing to invest in quality rather than quantity when buying clothes. There are three ways of recycling fashion: Recycling in the fashion industry. Clothing to dye for: the textile sector must confront water risks. Textiles leave one of the largest water footprints on the planet and dyeing poses an especially big problem. Dye houses in India and China are notorious for not only exhausting local water supplies, but for dumping untreated wastewater into local streams and rivers.
The industry's challenge is to adopt more water-friendly technologies to dye cotton and polyester, the two most mass marketed textiles. So what can companies do to mitigate the effects of this timeless, yet toxic, dyeing process? "There is no silver bullet," said Kathy Hattori, who runs a natural dye manufacturing company Botanical Colors. "There are so many ways to reduce the impact of textile dyeing," she continued, "because, for example, it's not realistic to eliminate a product such as polyester. " Hattori explained many factories could start by tackling the wasteful dye-to-water ratio.
Waterless dyeing should be the textile industry's holy grail, but widespread adoption is years away. 20130325-GP-ENG. Marks & Spencer | How We Do Business | Our policies | Chemicals in textile production. To ensure the safety of our customers, people who work in our supply chains and the environment we were the UK's first major retailer to launch a chemical compliance policy in 1998. This banned the use of hazardous chemicals such as alkylphenol ethoxylates (known as APEOs) and heavy metals and was gradually extended to cover textile printers, finishing facilities, laundries and tanneries as well as dyehouses. Environmental and Chemical Policy The M&S approach to chemical management has never stood still and has continually evolved. After extensive consultation with industry experts, in 2011 we updated our standards as the M&S Environmental and Chemical Policy (ECP) to include new modules providing guidance and best practices for our suppliers.
For the first time, we also included sections on environmental management and minimising water and energy use. In 2013 we updated again with new sections on APEOs and tanneries. Greenpeace Detox 2020 campaign September 2013 update Downloads Innovation. Textile_industry_hazards. Sustainability. Cotton and Water | Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) Cotton and the Environment - Organic Trade Association. Cotton and the Environment Benefit of OrganicOrganic agriculture protects the health of people and the planet by reducing the overall exposure to toxic chemicals from synthetic pesticides that can end up in the ground, air, water and food supply, and that are associated with health consequences, from asthma to cancer. Because organic agriculture doesn't use toxic and persistent pesticides, choosing organic products is an easy way to help protect yourself.
Acreage estimates for the 2006 U.S. cotton crop show approximately 5,971 acres of certified organic cotton were planted in the United States and in 2007, farmers planed 7,473 acres. Internationally, Turkey and the United States are the largest organic cotton producers. Demand is being driven by apparel and textile companies that are expanding their 100% organic cotton program and developing programs that blend small percentages of organic cotton with their conventional cotton products. Sources 1) EJF. (2007) . (4) Lauresn, S. U. U.