Hi fellow ethical fashionistas, hope you guys have been keeping up with our blog so far and have gained some valuable insights from our previous post. In our previous post, we focused on how the fast fashion industry causes water pollution. I will now be talking more about the devastating effects and impacts of these chemicals on the water bodies and how it affects peoples’ health.
During the production of textiles, large amounts of chemicals are used and released into the water which results in wastewater. From fibre production, dyeing, bleaching and wet processing of the clothes, each of these processes involves different types of chemicals (Shah, 2010). These chemicals range from pesticides, dyes, detergents and surfactants (Pal, 2017).
Specifically, some of the dyes used are highly carcinogenic. Notably, a dye called the azo dye has a high potential to split into carcinogenic causing elements called arylamines during the dye stripping process of clothes (Pal, 2017). Hence, the workers who work with these types of dyes are highly exposed to these carcinogenic causing dyes which pose a threat to their health. Not only that, some of the other dyes used usually contain a certain level of heavy metals and they can range from Arsenic to Lead and even Chromium (Pal, 2017 ). Chromium here is highly carcinogenic and people may even develop allergic skin reactions to the different types of heavy metals.
As mentioned in our previous post, some companies do not adhere to guidelines and directly release the wastewater into the water bodies which leads to pollution. An example of this is evident in the picture below – the water body in Dhaka has turned red due to the dyes being dumped. This will greatly affect those who actually depend on the water for their daily activities as it is no longer safe or drinkable.
Water body in Dhaka, Bangladesh turns red due to chemicals and waste dumped into it from nearby tannery factories, May 14, 2005. Source: Reuters/ Rafiquar Rahman.
Although some companies might comply with restrictions, trace amounts of the chemicals and pollutants can still be found in the wastewater when it is being released into the water body (Nabeerasool, 2019). Ultimately, these impacts on these water bodies will be devastating as it not only affects the quality of the water, but it also affects the aquatic life living in these water bodies (Pal, 2017) and the people who are involved in the entire fast fashion process. If there are no concrete solutions to solve this pressing issue, the impacts on the health of the affected will be dire and irreversible.
References
Nabeerasool, A. (2019). How is fast fashion polluting our water?. Retrieved 22 August 2020, from https://www.openaccessgovernment.org/how-is-fast-fashion-polluting-our-water/77704/
Pal, H. (2017). Environmental Issues in Textiles: Global Regulations, Restrictions and Research. In S. S. Muthu (Ed.), Detox Fashion: Supply Chain (pp. 27-45). Singapore: Springer Singapore. https://doi-org.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/10.1007/978-981-10-4777-0_2
Rahman, R. The fashion industry emits more carbon than international flights and maritime shipping combined. Here are the biggest ways it impacts the planet. Retrieved 22 August 2020. https://www.reutersconnect.com/all?id=tag%3Areuters.com%2C2005%3Anewsml_PBEAHUOAICL&share=true
Shah, R. (2011). Examine the role of different actors across the textile -fashion supply chain to understand the issues regarding growth of eco-labeled sustainable textile products (Order No. 10820698). Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. (2061007405). Retrieved from http://libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/login?url=https://search-proquest-com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/docview/2061007405?accountid=13876
