It is no doubt that many of us have bought some sort of fast fashion goods in our lifetime, but how many of us take a moment to stop and think about the effects of each piece of clothing we buy? To start things out, what is fast fashion? According to Solene Rauturier’s “What is Fast Fashion”, fast fashion can be defined as “cheap, trendy clothing, that sample ideas from the catwalk or celebrity culture and turns them into garments in high street stores at breakneck speed to meet consumer demand.” This essentially means that any clothes you buy from standard stores such as Forever21, Urban Outfitters, Old Navy etc, would be considered fast fashion.
So what is the effect of these companies and clothing? Most clothes are made of cotton or other materials grown or made by man. Cotton needs a lot of water to grow, with almost 20,000 liters of water needed to grow 1 kilogram of cotton. (sustainyourstyle.org) Now this may not seem like such a huge deal until we remember that over 100 million people in India alone do not have access to drinking water, or how the citizens of Flint Michigan still do not have clean water. Over 1.2 trillion gallons of water are used by the fashion industry yearly, and if that water was dispersed to those who truly need it, it would help mediate the water crisis.
Another huge aspect of the fast fashion epidemic that is plaguing our world is the air pollution. The fashion industry alone contributes to 10 percent of global greenhouse emissions; according to NASA’s climate website, human greenhouse emissions are one of the leading causes for climate change. One of the bigger recognizable factors of fast fashion clothing items is that they are generally made in coal powered countries such as India and Bangladesh, which are also known to be some of the most polluted countries in the world according to world population review . Most items of clothing made in these countries are made from synthetic fibers like polyester and acrylic which emit nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide. Nitrous oxide is also known as laughing gas and is known to have 310 times more harmful impact on global warming than carbon dioxide according to the Scottish Environmental Protections Agency’s Carbon Dioxide fact sheet.
Land pollution is something that most people see on a day to day basis, whether it is someone littering on the sidewalk or massive landfills full of trash. But if we take a closer look at those landfills and dumpsters and trash in general, what do we see? The average family in western countries throw out around 65 pounds of clothes every year. Of those 65 pounds, only about 15 percent are recycled or donated to be reused. Not only does this pollute the environment in and around these landfills, but is extremely detrimental to people and animals who live around the area with thousands of animals ingesting plastics and fibers from these clothes and thus dying from the poisons. Some cities burn their trash, which is especially dangerous for those with respiratory problems.
So what can we do to combat all of these issues? There are a lot of different things that we as individuals can do to lower our environmental impact in our clothing choices. There are many companies that have “eco-friendly” clothing options, either made of recycled materials or are in another way better for the environment, but these options can be hundreds of dollars for something as simple as jeans or a tee shirt. The biggest thing that almost everyone can do is reduce the amount of clothing they buy; if something is ripped, stitch it up instead of buying something completely new. If you reach the point where you need something new, buy second hand rather than new. Not only is this good for the environment, it is also good for your wallet and as many second hand shops are non-profits, the money spent on the second hand clothes will go to a good cause. The other major choice we can make is buying things that are meant to last. Investing in products that are good quality will undoubtedly be cheaper and environmentally friendly in the long run. When in doubt, always remember to reduce, reuse and recycle.
Works Cited
“The Causes of Climate Change.” NASA, NASA, 18 Aug. 2020, climate.nasa.gov/causes/.
“Environmental Impacts of the Fashion Industry.” SustainYourStyle,
www.sustainyourstyle.org/old-environmental-impacts.
“UN Helps Fashion Industry Shift to Low Carbon.” Unfccc.int, unfccc.int/news/un-helps-
fashion-industry-shift-to-low-carbon.
“What Is Fast Fashion?” Good On You, 30 Sept. 2020, goodonyou.eco/what-is-fast-fashion/.
“Most Polluted Countries 2020.” Most Polluted Countries 2020, 2020,
worldpopulationreview.com/country-rankings/most-polluted-countries.