Usually, the production of garments and accessories can mean the use of huge amounts of energy and water and the pollution of land, air , river and sea. When companies take raw materials (whether they’re natural or full of chemicals), or make synthetic versions (from oil and other non-renewable resources) and turn them into the things you buy, it’s the planet that pays for it.
The rivers of garment towns all over the world run red (or blue, or green) with the remains of toxic dyes. Others, no longer run at all, instead they’ve become stagnant pools of sludge or dry lifeless ground.
The global textile industry, that launched the industrial revolution, uses around 600 different toxic dyes and other chemicals.
It's not just clothing either. Jewellery can be a disaster area too. The average gold ring generates 20 tonnes of waste and the routine use of cyanide and mercury to separate gold from rock leaves a devastating toxic mess in its wake.
Shoes are another cause for concern, as nowadays most are made with a lot of glue and yet more synthetics and chemicals, making shoe factories pretty horrid places in which to work.
Meanwhile, leather has a load of unethical baggage - from animal welfare to the environmental impact of tanning, as we’ve detailed in our leather section.
Finally, perhaps the biggest environmental impact is caused by what you do with your garment after you buy it (some studies would say up to 60%). What temperature it's washed at (the cooler the better), how often you wash it, whether or not you dry clean it (more nasty chemicals), how long you wear it for (we hope not for one night only) and what you do with it when you no longer want it (millions of tonnes end up in landfill!!) all these factors can contribute to environmental disaster.
We think it's nice and empowering to know that we can make a positive difference and a substantial one at that; by considering what we buy, how we use it and what we do to it. Individuals perhaps can’t change the way a spinning mill works, or establish a closed loop water filtration system, but if everyone does their bit, it’ll help the planet a lot. A bleak picture of the planet’s future has been painted but we believe we (you, us, them, individuals working together) can turn it around.
We look for brands and producers that are identifying the environmental impact of their production and are actively seeking ways to reduce it. Given the length and complexity of most supply chains, we know it's unlikely that things will be perfect all the way through, but there is an awful lot of good work going on out there and we'd like to celebrate and showcase it.