Reject Fast Fashion
Summary: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle clothing to reject fast fashion
Description
Fast Fashion is a major cause of environmental damage and humanitarian abuses around the world.
According to the EPA, the fashion industry has an enormous footprint: producing more carbon emissions than the aviation industry, using millions of tons of pesticides on a yearly basis in the cultivation of cotton, producing huge amounts of wastewater to convert cotton into clothing, and the laundering of synthetic textiles contributes over 35% of ocean microplastics.
Humanitarian abuses related to fast fashion include unsafe working conditions, use of child labor, exposure to toxic chemicals, and worker exploitation.
The fashion industry has embraced the fast fashion business model to increase consumer purchases by replicating high-fashion designs, mass-producing them at a low cost, and bringing them to retail quickly while demand is at its highest. Fast fashion clothes are, by design, intended for limited durability through the use of cheap synthetic materials and poor quality workmanship.
For a multitude of reasons, reuse of donated clothing in charity and consignment shops is low and only an estimated 0.1% of textiles are actually recycled worldwide. Massachusetts numbers are better, but the rest end up in landfills or are incinerated.
Sustainable Medfield encourages residents to follow the EPA’s waste management hierarchy for fast fashion: Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.
Deep Dive
Learn more at these sites!
https://www.mass.gov/guides/clothing-and-textile-recovery
https://massrecycle.org/recycle-smart-ma/
one5c : how to ditch fast fashion, fast fashion’s climate impacts, if (and how) clothing rentals help, and how to spot high-quality clothes.
EPA's Best Management Practices for Pollution Prevention in the Textile Industry Manual
Newsweek, Fast Fashion Is Creating an Environmental Crisis (2016)
Steps to Take
The EPA recommends that consumers refuse, reduce, reuse, and recycle. *
“What do these terms mean?
Refuse is the practice of saying no to adding items to your cart or closet and abstaining from consumerism when possible. To ‘refuse’, you could establish a buy-nothing practice and see how long you can keep it up or pause when the urge to buy a new piece strikes you and consider whether you already have a good option or could borrow from a friend or family member.
To reduce is to think of the item’s versatility and functionality in your lifestyle and only buy the minimum needed. You can also avoid washing clothes after each use, which will lengthen clothing items’ lifespans. Simple repairs can also yield a longer lifespan to clothing.
To reuse is to contribute to and use the U.S.’s fantastic, thriving secondhand market online or visit brick-and-mortar consignment shops and thrift stores. Find ways to upcycle (making something new or more useful out of something you would otherwise toss in the trash) by making quilts or gift-wrapping using fabric scraps.
Recycle is the last of the four R options because at this time, like plastics, there is no guarantee your clothing will actually be recycled. Nevertheless, it’s still worth it to seek out innovative private companies who recycle fabric, or find public programs, such as animal shelters, who might have uses for old clothing or fabric scraps”. In Medfield, look for white “M” boxes located at every public school, Hinkley Park and the Transfer Station for Baystate textile recycling.
* https://www.epa.gov/perspectives/fashion-forward-fabric-recycling-and-reuse-spring
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