Fast fashion's carbon footprint can be reduced across its life cycle, new study suggests
Fast fashion is built on cheap, short-lived garments, especially cotton and polyester T-shirts. To sustain its profits, the industry relies on high production frequency, short product lifespan and a globalized supply chain. All these elements contribute to making the industry a major source of global pollution.
Fast fashion industry is notorious for its significant carbon footprint, primarily due to the production of cheap, low-quality garments made from cotton and polyester. To understand which stages of the garment life cycle contribute most to environmental impact, researchers from Concordia University conducted a comprehensive study.
The findings reveal that the manufacturing process in China, transportation, and consumer use are the major contributors to pollution. Polyester T-shirts emit more greenhouse gases than cotton ones, mainly because of the energy-intensive synthetic fiber production. However, cotton demands substantial land and water resources for cultivation.
Air freight, a common shipping method, accounts for a significant portion of emissions, but switching to sea freight can cut a shirt's carbon footprint by 30-60%. Extending garment lifespan by half can also reduce emissions by almost half, as fewer new garments would need to be produced. The study concludes that the fashion industry could achieve the most significant environmental benefits by reducing the number of garments produced, designing them for longevity, and minimizing air freight.
Consumers can also make a substantial impact by prolonging the use of their clothing, regardless of the material it is made from.
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