The fashion industry has contributed to a full-blown environmental crisis, and we can’t ignore it any longer. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that textile waste composes almost 5% of all landfill space in the country. The mountains of discarded fabric that US citizens toss in the trash each day are no longer the punchline of a poorly-conceived trash-fashion joke. We’re now talking about the serious state of a planet covered in clothing, and consumers that are demanding a plan for action.
But it’s not too late to take things in another direction toward a more ethical way of consuming clothing. We stand at a crossroads, and now is the time to choose to minimize the waste created by our current habits before landfills reach critical clothing mass.
The Facts of the Fast Fashion Environmental Crisis
A new, mouth-watering crop of style is available every week in our current, 52-annual-cycle fashion industry. Amidst the insanity of mass-produced, mass-consumed clothing, it’s hard to think about keeping clothes for very long. This consumerist attitude has set us up for some serious environmental consequences.
Each year, the average United States resident consumes 82 lbs of clothing, and sends 85% of it into the landfills. That’s an average 70 lbs per person. This habit of sending our leftover threads to the bin is only growing. From 1999 to 2009, there was a 40% increase in the pounds of textile waste produced by Americans.
But the growing threat of clothing pollution is also one of the most evitable. Not only are textiles almost 100% recyclable (even though only 15% of them are currently recycled), textile waste can also be minimized before clothing even hits the shelves. Changing the way the fashion industry produces each item of clothing can cut into the current level of clothing waste, saving water energy, and ensuring that there is less hazardous waste finding its way into the environment.
Where Will the Current Level of Textile Waste Leave Us?
What will happen if nothing changes? Landfill capacity is a major problem. Synthetic clothing can take hundreds of years to decompose, and the bulk of fabric used in the fast fashion industry is synthetic blends. This issue starts with the fashion industry itself, and the choices each company makes when purchasing textiles--synthetically-based or otherwise.
In order to avoid becoming a country with overdressed landfills, change needs to start at an industry level, motivated by the voice of consumers.
A More Sustainable, Ethical Solution
Motivated, educated consumers can ensure that we curb the problem of textile waste before it’s too late. If fashion-minded buyers invest in more sustainable clothing brands, the industry will see that more ethical company practices is worth the extra effort and investment. Let’s minimize waste from fashion industry transactions and move toward a cleaner, greener, more ethical future.