Water-saving and
environmental protection in the garment industry are the precise meaning of: SUSTAINABILITY!
FashionUnited[1]
Figures published by the European Environment Agency state
that for every person in the EU, textile consumption requires 9 cubic meters of
water, 400 square meters of land, and 391kg of raw materials, and causes a
carbon footprint of about 270 kg.
The EU is also calling for innovation in the sector, with
producers taking responsibility for their products along the value chain with
sufficient capacities for recycling and minimal incineration and landfilling.
Garments will be labelled so that clearer information on
textiles and a digital product passport will inform consumers of each facet of
the garments they purchase. It further empowers people to tackle greenwashing
by ensuring the accuracy of companies’ green claims.
Ultimately the goal is to stop overproduction and
overconsumption, and discourage the destruction of unsold or returned textiles.
EURONEWS[2]
We will have to wait until more details emerge in 2023, but
the centerpiece of its plans is an EU-wide Extended Producer Responsibility
scheme. This will make fashion brands pay a waste fee for every item they sell.
The less ecological the item, the higher the fee.
PUNCHLINE[3]
Neill Ricketts, chief executive of Versarien, said:
"We have been aware for a while that there is a need
for textiles to be more friendly to the environment, the use of valuable
resources needed in the current methods of production are simply not
sustainable."
EURONEWS[4]
However, there is one source of environmental damage from
textiles that is too often overlooked - the traditional dyeing process. Most of
our clothes are still coloured using industrial dye and chemical baths, which
have barely changed in centuries.
SOLUTION[5]
Since many years I am trying to apply my idea “Digital
dyeing” that will save up to 70% water consumption in the dyeing process
(Disperse for Polyester, Reactive for all cellulosic, Silk and Polyamide – wide
application range) against conventional
process, and now the demand for innovation is higher and the call for
environmental protection is a must.[6]
Making manufacturing more sustainable[7]
My company, Alchemie Technology, based in Cambridge, is one
of the clean tech firms determined to make a difference and introduce more
sustainable manufacturing processes to the fashion industry.
Our digital dyeing EndeavourTM machine, which produces no
wastewater and reduces energy consumption by 85 per cent compared to
traditional dyeing, is now in production.
Despite the very few data released on the process and the
application – Technical Data Sheet shows only the comparison between
traditional and digital for Disperse Dyeing on Polyester only - but I have to
highlight and we all have to support such a great effort and innovation.
Reminder
“2.1 BILLION PEOPLE GLOBALLY DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO CLEAN, SAFE
DRINKING WATER.
3.4 MILLION PEOPLE DIE EACH YEAR FROM SCARCE AND CONTAMINATED WATER”[8]
[1] https://fashionunited.uk/news/fashion/europe-to-crackdown-on-fast-fashion/2022033162347
[2] https://www.euronews.com/green/2022/03/31/fast-fashion-will-be-held-accountable-for-clothing-quality-toxic-chemicals-and-waste-says-
[3] https://www.punchline-gloucester.com/articles/aanews/fast-fashion-crackdown-good-news-for-alternatives
[4] https://www.euronews.com/green/2022/02/26/dyeing-for-fashion-why-the-fashion-industry-is-causing-20-of-water-pollution
[5] https://nagyroshdy.blogspot.com/2022/01/textile-dyeing-pollution-solution-i.html
[6] https://nagyroshdy.blogspot.com
[7] https://www.euronews.com/green/2022/02/26/dyeing-for-fashion-why-the-fashion-industry-is-causing-20-of-water-pollution
[8] https://wholives.org/our-mission/mission/
