- By Violeta – This article is part of the Sustainability series from Andernach‘s English class. Enjoy !
Fast fashion grew a lot since the 20th century. Since that time the clothes became much cheaper. People are offered a low price to sew these clothes. This leads to overwork and less sleep. Not only the workers are overworked, additionally, way too much cotton must be used. This can exploit the fields leading to no more growing at all.
Almost all clothes are made of cotton. This is a huge problem because it requires 2,700 liters of water for one single cotton shirt. This could last a human for 2 years. Cotton is known to be water intensive compared to other fibers used for textile production. Apart from that, water intensity of cotton cultivation is important in regions where water resources are limited.
Because of the fast production it’s not tested how durable the clothes are. This way they usually won’t last long and are thrown away. Apart from that, the creation of so many clothes comes with a heavy environmental price. Every year the clothing industry requires 93 billion cubic meters of water. It’s responsible for around 20% of industrial water. The industry also has a heavy carbon footprint. It’s responsible for 10% of total carbon emissions.