Why is fast fashion so bad again?
We all know sustainable fashion is important and that fast fashion is bad but often we don’t fully understand the reasons why. I want to outline 5 reasons why sustainable fashion is vital and how important it is to reconsider the way we shop.
1. THE STRAIN ON THE PLANET: Planetary Boundaries have been exceeded meaning we have an increasingly high risk of irreversible environmental changes and destabilising our planet
The Planetary Boundaries is a framework which allows us to quantify how we operate within a set of different areas: Energy emissions, land use, water consumption, chemical usage and waste creation. The research was led by The Stockholm Resilience and The Australian National University who proposed these boundaries as a way we can operate in a safe, sustainable space for generations to come. Exceeding them risks irreversible environmental damage and change. As shown in the diagram below, we have already done so. While fashion is not the only contributor, the way we produce clothing is highly damaging and contributes to all of these factors. Producing clothing requires water and energy creating CO2 emissions, chemical pollution and vast amounts of textile waste post wearer so it is vital we do not continue to mass-produce so much clothing. To learn more about the planetary boundaries head to https://stockholmresilience.org/research/planetary-boundaries.html, https://globalfashionagenda.com/pulse-of-fashion-industry-2019-update-released/#
Diagram from the Pulse of the Fashion Industry Report 2017
2. THE AMOUNT OF WASTE: our disposable nature to fashion has led to us not valuing the resources used to produce them
An estimate of 200,000 tonnes of garment and textile waste ends up in landfill each year from the UK, and only 20% of unwanted garments are recycled. The disposable nature of fashion has led to an attitude where we don't value the resources used to produce our clothing. By disposing of all these materials directly to landfill the raw materials are wasted and the materials cannot be reused. The focus on trends, new seasons and new outfits for each event has led us to consuming far more clothing and spending much less on each item. The vast amount of clothing waste is either burnt or ends up in landfill, which damages the environment and often is piled up in other countries from where it was initially disposed of. By shopping sustainably you can aim to purchase upcycled clothing, clothing made from recycled materials or second-hand items that help promote recycling and reusing rather than producing more new items. A fact from the Textile Recovery Institute states that 95% of all used clothing, footwear and household textiles can be reused or recycled but only 15% is. This disparity shows us that is our responsibility, as an individual, to do this. If you want to learn more about clothing waste head to https://www.wrap.org.uk/content/clothing-waste-prevention, https://www.fashionrevolution.org/dead-white-mans-clothes/, https://www.mass.gov/doc/textile-recovery-initiative-fact-sheet/download
Diagram from the Pulse of the Fashion Industry Report 2017
3. THE HARM TO THE PLANET: our demand to produce more clothing is destroying natural sources
The way we produce clothing not only puts a vast strain on our resources but also harms the planet. It leads to deforestation, habitat loss, water irrigation, water stress and producing and releasing toxic chemicals. The example I am going to briefly outline is the harm that is caused by water irrigation for growing cotton; however, this is just one example among many more. The fact is that the Aral Sea is now a 10th of its original size after water irrigation was implemented to divert water for cotton plantations. Uzbekistan, located at the south of the Aral sea, is one of the largest cotton exporters in the world and the demand for cotton, and the economy that it brings, is deemed more important than the environment and the negative impact it has had on the communities who used to survive by fishing. The reduction of such a large body of water has caused a significant change to the environment in that region in terms of temperate climate and rain-fall There are also issues surrounding the dried up sea bed: it has now become extremely salty and full of sediment, causing salt storms. The fertilisers used for decades to grow the cotton have resulted in a build-up of harmful chemicals in the soil. Our demand for cheap, fast fashion has led to this mass usage of natural resources to provide the cotton. By shopping sustainably you can ensure the garments you purchase have been made with Fair Trade and GOTS standards and the cotton has not been grown in a harmful way. However, it’s wise to check this out fully rather than just believing the label - remember when H&M had a label on a top saying this item was made from recycled materials but it was applying to the just the label, not the actual top.
Image from NASA Photos showing the shirking Aral Sea
4. THE UNDERPAID GARMENT WORKERS: we all know this, so why don’t we stop shopping as we do?
We all know that garment workers work in poor conditions and are drastically underpaid but this doesn’t seem to be remembered when our desire to purchase a new item kicks in. There is a huge focus on female empowerment and equality all over Instagram so why are women still buying clothing from brands that support and supply the demand of other women working in awful conditions and being underpaid? I don’t have the answer to this but I think it would be interesting for us all to undertake this research and self-assessment while shopping. 80% of garment workers are female and earn under 21$ per month. Fashion Revolution’s WHO MADE MY CLOTHES encourages us to question the finished product that we see, asking about how it was produced, and Labour Behind the Label campaigns for people to be paid a living wage. A garment worker typically earns 1-3% of the retail price of an item of clothing; if the top costs £8 they will earn 24p (fact from Labour Behind the Label). Despite making a commitment to pay their employees the living wage, often little is actually done to implement this so that the workers do receive their higher pay. Shopping sustainably is a great way to ensure the person who made the clothing is paid a fair wage for it. There are plenty of brands like Bird Song London and Lucy and Yak who ensure their garment workers are paid a living wage and lead by example in valuing their employees. To learn more head to https://labourbehindthelabel.org/who-we-are/
Video from Labour Behind the Label
5. CONSCIOUS CONSUMPTION: changing your own mindset and approach to viewing and buying clothes is the most important step
By supporting sustainable fashion we can help create a change in the whole fashion system. It is very difficult for a large fashion company to adopt a sustainable approach for many reasons. Their production links are already established, the way they source fabrics is linked closely with price which is based on what the customers are expecting to pay, their margins are set and the brand perception of price for value has been determined. Ultimately they have built their brands on mass supply, inexpensive materials and labour, and new products launching each month. To become sustainable their whole brand would have to be totally changed. The prices would increase, the production runs would be shorter and new clothing drops would reduce, resulting in an entirely new system and, basically, a different brand. I think this is a monumental task that is very unlikely to happen unless there is a great shift in demand. Rather than expecting these huge organisations to change, I think we have more power and control of a change in our own approach to how we buy clothing. Purchasing sustainable clothing needs to be a shift in mindset to the way we shop and being conscious of all the parts of the supply chain that are affected by us making the purchase. Making the decision to buy something that may be expensive, acknowledging the benefits of doing so to the wider community and showing value and care to this item, are attitudes that may not be adopted immediately but are a necessary shift to make.
Embroideries by Bryony Porter @Tickover