Now that we've covered both phases of the production process, it's time to talk about what happens when the last threads are cut, and garments are packaged to sell. Per usual, there are several unsustainable steps that occur between a garment being finished, and reaching stores. From pollution-heavy modes of transportation, to the millions of tons of clothes that go into landfills each year, clothes have a heavy ecological footprint well after the harmful dye baths and destroyed water resources.
Before it meets the store, the garment makes several, ecologically expensive trips. Depending on the amount of work that goes into each garment, it can make trips via airplane, truck, and other polluting modes of transportation back and forth between sewers/dye and washing facilities before being shipped to the retailer. In China alone their textile industry creates 3 billion tons of soot each year. Now, our $9 skirt may not have the embroidery or special fabric treatment that necessitates several trips, but shipping skirts by the thousands across the world is not exactly being conservative with atmospheric pollution either. Upon arriving at the retailer the garments undergo additional processes of being packed and shipped across the country to various stores; ergo, more pollution.
Tragically, fast fashion clothes don't have much life after being purchased. Because of the poor conditions under which they were made, these garments have a limited amount of wears before being thrown away. In 2013 about 12.4 million tons of clothing, footwear, and other non-durable textiles where thrown away. That’s right, in a single year we threw away millions of tons of clothes. Even more unfortunate, the damage done by our trashing of clothes can’t be undone, as the landfills are already brimming with Forever 21’s last ironic tees. It won’t be long before our skirt begins to rip at the seam, or the hem falls apart, and it joins the ever-growing pile of wasted clothing.
One way we attempt to recycle our clothes is through donating to Goodwill or our local used clothing store. If we donate the clothes we no longer wear, we’re not exactly putting them on a one-way trip to the landfill, right? Unfortunately, only about 15 percent (and that’s an optimistic figure, some say its around 10 percent) of donated clothes end up being purchased for extended consumption. Used clothing stores receive so much of our cast-offs that they're forced to throw away clothes that have been on the racks for barely a month. Now, the benefits of buying used clothes, on the other hand, are unquestionable. If we all bought half our clothing at used clothing stores, we’d be extending the life of a garment and putting less demand on production for new clothes. Plus, used clothing also tends to be cheaper, so we’re saving money! Buying vintage is one of the few things that we can do to change the trend of overwhelming waste.
To drastically alter the rate at which we throw away clothing however, we need to modify how much clothing we consume. Having better working conditions, organic textiles, and even buying used clothes will only get us so far if we keep buying and discarding clothing in unprecedented amounts. In 2011 the world fashion industry took in over $3 billion, and it has probably only grown from there. You know that phrase “The customer is always right?” Well, the customer/consumer in our capitalist empire has enormous amount of power in determining what gets put in stores. It may not seem that way to the naked eye, but season after season fashion designers from all market levels are being told what to design according to what sold the previous year. From the mom-sweaters of JC Penney, to the moto jackets at Saint Laurent; whatever makes money will be put into stores. If consumers generally stop buying so much from new clothing retailers, fewer clothes will be produced to just get thrown away. Even more, if we buy new clothes from brands that are already using sustainable production methods, these companies will have the ability to spread jobs (the proper way) into areas that need it overseas. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
Next week will be the final part of the series, and arguably the most important, where I’ll be discussing what we can do to change these practices across the fashion industry. It will take a group effort, but it’s unquestioningly possible to make widespread changes to the way our clothing is made and purchased.
