Let’s face it, everybody wants new clothes. There is something magical and satisfactory about buying that beautiful dress, or that blazer you have been daydreaming about for the past week.
Nowadays we constantly buy new pieces because we can afford it. With the rise of fast-fashion, the industry has been democratized. Everyone has the money to invest in looking good and fashionable, even for the lowest prices.
However, the low prices of this kind of clothing cannot be compared to the high cost for the environment that fast-fashion involves.
We’d like to show you the main problems that this industry is causing to our planet, that is why we’ve joined them in this post and summarized them so that you can get to know them briefly. No fuss, just facts. Here we go.
1.** Textile dyeing is the second largest polluter of clean water globally** , after agriculture. The fast-fashion industry is responsible for generating residual waste that is toxic, bio-accumulative (meaning the substance builds up in an organism faster than the organism can excrete or metabolise it), disruptive to hormones and carcinogenic.
The main material used to produce clothing, polyester, is the main responsible for generating micro-fibers that cannot dissolve and accumulate in our oceans . These fellas are so tiny that they can’t get filtered when we wash our clothes and therefore end up in our oceans. Guess what happens then? Plankton eats these residuals, small fish eat plankton, big fish eat that small fish and we (yes, you!) eat big fish. Now let’s be honest, no one wants to eat polyester for dinner. It’s not tasty nor good for our health.
The fashion industry is responsible for a huge water consumption and use of pesticides throughout the whole process of fabrication. Did you know that it takes 2720 liters of water to make just one t-shirt?
Synthetic fibers (such as polyester) are plastic fibers, therefore they are not bio-degradable and can take up to 200 years to decompose.
Only 15% of our clothing are recycled or donated , leading the rest to be either incinerated or accumulated. Yes, that is a LOT of waste. And it’s even more preoccupying when an average American throws away 80 pounds of used clothing per year.
15 million tons of textile waste is generated each year in the US, this amount has doubled over the last 20 years.
The clothing industry is responsible for 10% of global carbon emissions . That is due to the non-renewable energy used during the production, manufacturing and distribution of its products.
23 kg of greenhouse gases are generated for each kilo of fabric produced, and 70 million oil barrels are used each year to produce polyester.
The fashion industry is responsible for water pollution, non-biodegradable microfiber production and generation of 15 million tons of waste each year in the US.
We could keep going, but there are so.many.problems. that come with the apparel industry that we would never finish writing this post.
Now, after mentioning some of the main issues that come with buying our beloved seasonal items, you are probably wondering what you can do to improve this (or at least we are hoping you are). But don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Here are a few easy things you can do to help save the planet (and therefore your life, let’s be clear).
Buy long-lasting items. This will not only save you money and time, but you will also be able to buy more exclusive garments with a much higher quality.
Upcycle. In other words, buy garments that have been made of used materials. Not only you will wear unique, hand-made pieces but also have a clear conscience that you are contributing to an unlimited usage of raw materials for your clothes.
Recycle your items! Many brands are now offering a recycling service where you can bring your old, unwanted clothes to them and in change they give you money or vouchers to buy NEW garments. Hell yeah!
Join the TRIBALBI community (aka us), the first platform to offer a renting/recycling service for clothing in which you rent your garments in exchange of money. This is the best option for you because you can wear different clothes every day without worrying about the environment. Plus, you get paid for it, so what’s not to love about it? New clothes every day for much less? Bring it on!
To fight against these problems we can buy long-lasting items, upcycle or join TRIBALBI.
Now that we’ve given you the info and our proposals, it is up t0 you to either make a change and save the planet or ignore us and end up extinct. We know what to do, how about you?
Originally posted on TRIBALBI. Hive blog powered by ENGRAVE.