How to make the fashion industry circular + comparing sustainable materials (scroll down)
How much do we know about the clothes we wear? What material is it made of? Where will it end up after we’re done with it?
I’ll admit I never pay enough attention to this. I only know that I’d like not to support fast fashion brands, and I’d love to purchase as much secondhand clothes as I can.
But I’m only human. I often find myself scrolling through fashion e-commerce apps and Instagram stores. In my Zalora app sits plenty of items in the wish list, stuff that I look at — but don’t feel comfortable enough to buy.
The fashion industry has not been the most friendly to the environment. According to the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (EMF), in the last 15 years, clothing production has approximately doubled, while utilization of clothes (average number of times a garment is used before it ceases to be used) has decreased by 36%.
This is in part driven by the rise of fast fashion in wealthier countries, where fashion seasons change faster than real seasons.
Alright, I’m going to just dump a little more bad news: the fashion industry produces 8% to 10% of global carbon dioxide emissions, causes around 20% of industrial water pollution from textile treatment and dying, 35% of oceanic micro-plastic pollution and over 92 million tonnes of waste per year (according to this review article).
Here’s a graphic that illustrates the environmental and social impact of clothing in different stages:
But don’t clothes get recycled or donated?
Well, according to EMF, 12% are down cycled (cascaded recycling, most probably into rags) and less than 1% are actually recycled back into clothes. Over 97% of clothes produced use virgin feed stock (see image below).
What about donations? Well, fast fashion items are typically not durable, so it may not last several rounds of wear. Buying more clothes frequently and then donating it after wearing it a few times also poses problems of its own.
The EMF report points out one: Much of the collected clothing in countries like Germany are exported to countries that have no collection infrastructure of their own. So after it is used by the new owner in the new country, it’ll most probably end up in landfills or down cycled.
So, what are the solutions to make the fashion industry circular? The EMF has three suggestions (that I paraphrase):
- Make sure clothes are used more and for a longer time — Design high-quality clothing, ensure durability and scale up clothing rental services.
- Design clothes to make sure it can be made again — Make sure the clothing can undergo closed-loop recycling, improve recycling technology, increase demand for recycled materials from clothing manufacturers and scale up clothing collection initiatives.
- Phase out substances of concern and micro-fiber release — make sure the material input is safe and healthy, including new process inputs for dyes and additives.
- Use renewable inputs — Even with higher clothing utilization and increased recycling, virgin resources are likely still needed. The ideal solution would be to wean the industry from non-renewable sources.
There are fashion companies out there that are changing their ways, of course. You can find some on the EMF website and Good On You.
Now, for a quick check on our favorite materials:
I found this tool by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC)that allows you to compare the sustainability of different materials from cradle-to-gate (discounting consumer use and end-of-life scenarios).
I thought it would be interesting to do a quick research on a few common materials:
(The information below is drawn from SAC and Good On You. The higher the score, the worse it is)
Polyester
This synthetic fiber is the most common fiber group in textile production.
Pros: Polyester is durable, and it can be recycled in some places. Some companies like Patagonia create polyester out of recycled plastic bottles, which cuts down on extraction of fossil fuels. Several clothing brands have also committed to using recycled polyester in their products.
Cons: Polyester is in part derived from fossil fuels, its not biodegradable, and its dye is toxic. Recycled polyester (and polyester fleece) could shed microfibers with each wash.
Cotton
This natural fiber is the second most common fiber in the global market.
Pros: Cotton is soft, light and breathable. It’s also a natural fiber.
Cons: Growing cotton is a water intensive exercise and it oftentimes involves pesticides. Organic cotton is known to do better on those scores.
Linen
Pros: Linen is made from flax plant fibres and its one of the oldest fibres known (it was used to wrap mummies!) It’s biodegradable (when not dyed), durable and the planting process is not water or pesticide intensive.
Cons: Linen crinkles very easily and the production process is labor intensive. A pricier fabric.
Nylon
Pros: Nylon is strong, durable and versatile. It can also be recycled in some places.
Cons: Nylon is derived from fossil fuels, so it’s not biodegradable. The production process is water and energy intensive, and produces greenhouse gas emissions. Again, because it is a synthetic fiber, there are concerns of microfiber leakage with each wash.
Questions about recycling
I went down a rabbit hole trying to figure out how to recycle clothes, particularly for the synthetic materials made of plastic (nylon and polyester).
I found a good explanation in this document by the Federal Office for the Environment in Switzerland. There are two main types of recycling: Mechanical and chemical.
Most materials go through mechanical recycling because chemical recycling is still costly. However, chemical recycling can better support closed loop recycling compared to mechanical recycling. (The same goes for thermal recycling, where the trash is incinerated and the value of the material is lost instead of becoming raw material again.)
But I still have questions about companies that use recycled polyester. How many times can it be recycled, especially via mechanical recycling? In addition, many clothes are now blends of polyester and other materials. How much more does it cost to recycle blended materials like this?
Here are a few of my thoughts about fashion and the circular economy going forward:
- I think the first strategy to take is to reduce consumption of clothing, because the recycling options and outcomes are still limited, and other models like clothing subscription are not as common.
- Therefore, innovations that can make chemical recycling more affordable (and safe and environmentally friendly) should be explored and made commonplace, so old clothing items can go through closed-loop recycling.
- At the same time, business models like subscriptions, rentals or lifetime guarantee (and take back models) should be encouraged, since it lengthens the life of clothes and the companies can be responsible for turning an old clothing into a new one again.
- Consumers should take note of a few things before purchasing an item: What material is it made of? How was it produced or made? What is the environmental impact? How long can it be used? What can it become at the end of its life?
Sources:
https://www.chemistryworld.com/features/recycling-clothing-the-chemical-way/4010988.article
