Fast Fashion is Speeding the Earth to Disaster
Caroline Martell
Fashion styles and trends are constantly evolving, but the societal desire to fit in and follow trends doesn’t appear to be going anywhere. In fact, there has been a consistent rise in clothing production.
Fast fashion companies have been a major contribution to the growth in clothing production. Between 80 billion and 150 billion garments of clothing are produced annually. Of this, 73% end up in landfills and only 1% are recycled into new pieces. These simple statistics raise many questions. How does fashion affect both the planet and its people? Can fashion ever be sustainable?
Fast fashion is defined as a highly profitable and exploitative business model that is used to mass produce trendy clothing. The fashion industry negatively affects the environment and workers. These issues must be understood to make positive change.
The fashion industry has countless issues, but one of the largest consequences of production is the impact on the environment and the sustainability of current models. The average US citizen disposes about 70 pounds of textiles annually and 5% of landfill space is textile waste. Fast fashion is made to live a short life to fuel more purchases from customers.
Clothing itself is often made from fabrics derived from plastic. This reduces recyclability and increases the chance of the clothing making its way to a landfill and becoming yet another source of waste.
Textile dyeing is also harmful as it is the second largest polluter of water. Polluted water serves as a threat to communities living near textile factories. High amounts of water are required in the development of many clothing and textile pieces. For example, jeans use 5,000 liters of water per pair and nearly 2 billions pairs are produced every year. And this number number is expected to grow during the next few years.
It is no secret that major companies profit from child labor and low-wage workers in developing countries. Why are these inhumane practices still in existence?
The short answer is the demand for clothing, unknowingly exhibited by consumers, and a lack of labor protection laws. People want to buy clothes but they don’t want to spend money. People want to have the newest trends, but they don’t want to shop around for the most environmentally friendly option. Their short term solution is to buy from fast fashion companies and brand name businesses that take advantage of families that need money and work to survive. As long as people are willing to give their money to companies that benefit from using child labor and paying their workers low wages, there won’t be significant changes made.
Worldwide, 168 million children are forced to work, many of them in the fashion industry. Conditions in many of the workspaces, specifically manufacturing countries in Asia, can be classified under modern slavery, as noted by the European Parliament. Many workers have to work 14–16 hours a day and 7 days a week while being paid as little as a fifth of a living salary. At the same time, these workers are inhaling lethal fumes, experiencing physical and verbal abuse, and working in unsanitary sweatshops. Clothing companies exploit the desperation for money and job opportunities to force workers into dangerous situations.
In an ideal world, clothing would be continuously recycled and reused, creating little to no waste. However, this is an unrealistic ambition and we must resort to examining the roles of designers, manufacturers, and consumers.
While it’s important to recognize that your decisions as an individual consumer leaves a footprint, you must also understand that the largest impact is made by large-scale companies and businesses. The companies overproduce products, leading to overconsumption and rapidly rising waste levels. These are often the same companies using child labor and low minimum wages to their advantage.
Unfortunately, the morals and practices of large mass production companies won’t change overnight as long as consumers continue to turn a blind eye to their actions. As a consumer, you determine where you spend your money. The power to enable or deter the actions of these large businesses is in your hands.
The most sustainable thing you can do is to use what you already have. Even if your closet is full of items from a brand that you recently learned is not up to par sustainability-wise, you don’t need to buy a new version of what you already own from a more sustainable brand. Purchasing new clothes often results in the irresponsible disposal of old clothes. When new clothes have to be purchased, consider these questions to avoid excessive disposal of old clothing: How often will you wear this piece of clothing? Do you already own a similar piece? What is the local, global, and environmental impact of your purchase?
Second hand purchases are often the next best option; look for consignment and thrift stores near you to help the planet and your wallet. Do your best to buy clothes that will be worn more than once. When it’s time to clear out your closet, donate your old clothes or consider the buyback programs available from certain companies.
I recommend looking through the website Good on You to do some quick and easy research on the clothing brands that you purchase from.
While the full weight of climate and human rights does not lie solely on individuals, you can contribute to the solution by making reasonable changes to your lifestyle. It seems unlikely that our current society will make the total switch to a sustainable fashion industry, but the closer we can get, the better.
It is clear that major changes need to be made in the fashion industry, but t is too soon to give up all hope. There are companies that are creating buyback, restoration, and recycling programs to encourage sustainability throughout their brand. Patagonia produces fleece jackets that are made from polyester from recycled bottles and also mends and recycles older purchases to encourage their customers to only buy necessary items. The United Nations recently launched a program called the UN Alliance for Sustainable Fashion to encourage a reduction of the negative social, economic and environmental impacts of the fashion industry. The Environmental Protection Agency has also been doing more research on fast fashion in recent years.
The fashion industry and the future of our planet will not change overnight. However, we can change our practices and together we can pressure businesses to evolve. Moving forward, make educated choices and consider the environmental and social consequences of each decision and purchase. Make an effort to acknowledge and understand your global footprint and to continue learning and sharing a little more everyday.
Caroline Martell is a member of the Science Research team in VAYCC
