Innova
Eco Red
Textiles, especially clothing, play a crucial role in our lives. However, the alarming rate at which they end up in landfills is staggering—equivalent to one garbage truck per second. This poses a severe risk to the environment if the trend continues.
Here are some key reasons why garment waste in landfills is problematic:
Fast Fashion: The fashion industry churns out new collections at an astonishing pace. Global clothing consumption has surged by 400%compared to two decades ago. This rapid growth leads to increased energy usage during production, more materials in circulation, and greater environmental impact.
Environmental Impact: Textile production ranks as the world’s second most polluting industry, trailing only the oil industry. It contributes to approximately 1.2 billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions, surpassing those from international flights and maritime shipping combined. By 2050, the fashion industry is projected to consume up to 25% of the world’s carbon budget.
Waste Disposal: When garments are discarded, 73% end up being burned or buried in landfills. Only around 12% are collected for recycling, and even then, they often get shredded and repurposed for items like mattresses, insulation, or cleaning cloths.
Atacama Dessert
The Atacama Desert in northern Chile has become a fast fashion dumping ground, and the scale of discarded clothing is truly breathtaking. Here’s how it happened:
Fast Fashion Phenomenon: The rapid mass production of inexpensive attire, known as fast fashion, has led to an environmental and social emergency. Between 2000 and 2014, clothing production doubled, and consumers began buying 60 percent more clothes, wearing them for half as long as they once did. This excessive consumption has created a surplus of clothing that ends up discarded.
Non-Biodegradable Materials: Most of these garments are made from synthetic materials and chemical products. These non-biodegradable, predominantly artificial, petroleum-derived fibers take more than 200 years to decompose. As a result, municipal dumps won’t accept these clothes, leaving them piling up in the desert.
Chile’s Role: Each week, shipments of used garments arrive in Chile at the free port of Iquique. Resellers buy some, but many end up discarded. With no rainfall in over a decade in the immediate area, the dry conditions exacerbate the problem. The Atacama Desert has been dubbed “the great fashion garbage patch,” and colossal piles of discarded clothes, with labels from all over the world, stretch as far as the eye can see.
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its time to act
You are responsible for the gradual elimination of scrapped garments in our landfills. Buy less, choose well. Limit your clothing purchases and focus on quality over quantity. Try Second Hand shopping.Consider buying vintage clothing. Extending the life of clothes by just tree months per item can significantly reduce their carbon, water.Repair and care. Repair your clothes whenever possible. Look for Textile Recycling Programs. Choose Sustainable materials. Opt for natural fibers like organic cotton, linen and hemp.
The clothing item that takes the most energy and water to be manufactured is denim jeans. The production of denim jeans requires a significant amount of water for dyeing and finishing processes, as well as energy for spinning, weaving, and distressing the fabric. The denim production process involves multiple steps that contribute to its high environmental impact.
Textile recycling is a sustainable practice that involves repurposing used clothing and textiles to create new products.
Collection and Sorting: The process begins with collecting discarded garments. These can be old jeans, shirts, or any other textile items. After collection, the garments are sorted based on their material type (e.g., denim, cotton, wool).
Preparation: The sorted denim garments are washed and prepared for recycling. This step may involve removing buttons, zippers, and other non-denim components.
Breaking Down the Fabric: The denim fabric is then broken down into smaller pieces. These pieces can be converted into fibers or yarns that serve as the raw materials for creating new denim products1.
Transformation Options:
Upcycling: Worn-out denim jeans can be transformed into fashionable denim accessories or upcycled into home decor items. For example, old jeans can become stylish bags or other accessories, offering a creative and sustainable approach to repurposing.
Chemical Recycling: Another promising technology involves breaking down denim fabric into its raw materials (such as cotton fibers) through various chemical reactions. These fibers can then be used to create entirely new denim products, reducing the need for virgin materials and minimizing waste
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Kenya, like many other countries, grapples with the consequences of fast fashion. The influx of cheap clothing, often discarded by wealthier nations, has significant effects on both the environment and local communities. In this report, we explore the clothing waste crisis in Kenya, focusing on its origins, impact, and potential solutions.
Millions of items of cheap clothing flood Kenya each year, ending up in sprawling landfills, smoldering fires, clogged waterways, and even the sea.
Nairobi River, which runs alongside Gikomba (Kenya's prime second-hand textile market), directly suffers from pollution caused by discarded fashion waste.
The fashion industry contributes up to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, surpassing international flights and shipping combined.
Synthetic fibers used in fast fashion release microplastics, further polluting the environment.
In 2021, Kenya received over **900 million items of used clothing through imports.
Out of these, approximately 458 million used clothing items were considered **worthless** and likely to be waste.
A significant portion of these items (up to 307 million) may contain plastic-based fibers.
Textile Waste Disposal: Every day, approximately 150 to 200 tonnes of textile waste equivalent to 60 to 75 truckloads—ends up being dumped, burned, or sent to overflowing dump sites like Dandora.
