Cotton
Cotton is a plant widely used to create a textile fabric. Unfortunately, though cotton is a plant, growing cotton can be very bad for the environment. 10% of total pesticide use and 25% of insecticides worldwide are used on cotton (2). It can take more than 20 000 litres of water just to produce 1 kg of cotton; equivalent to a single T-Shirt and pair of jeans (3). The Aral Sea, once the world's fourth largest inland lake with a thriving ecosystem , has shrunk to just 15% of its original size, mainly as a result of irrigation for the cotton industry. Only about 27% of cotton is grown under rain-fed conditions. The rest is produced in irrigated fields which leads to greater water loss through seepage, evaporation and poor water management (4).
Polyester and Nylon
Polyester is a synthetic fibre derived from coal, air, water, and petroleum (5). Nylon is a thermoplastic and a silky material (6). Polyester fibres are formed from a chemical reaction between an acid and alcohol (5). Made from petrochemicals, these synthetics are non-biodegradable as well, so they are very unsustainable. Nylon manufacturing creates nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas 310 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Making polyester uses large amounts of water for cooling. Both processes consume a large amount of electricity (7).
2: "Cotton." Pesticide Action Network. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://www.panna.org/resources/cotton.
3: "Cotton Farming." WWF. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/about_freshwater/freshwater_problems/thirsty_crops/cotton/.
4: "The Cost of Cotton: Dirty Cotton." People & Planet. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://peopleandplanet.org/redressfashion/briefing/dirty.
Figure 3: "Aral Sea." Digital image. The Aral Sea Crisis. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://www.columbia.edu/~tmt2120/aral_sea_2006.jpg.
5: "Polyester." Wikipedia. May 30, 2014. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyester.
6: "Nylon." Wikipedia. May 30, 2014. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nylon.
7: "Environmental Impacts." Green Choices. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://www.greenchoices.org/green-living/clothes/environmental-impacts.
Figure 4: "Skull and Crossbones." Digital image. Wikipedia. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/Skull_and_crossbones.svg/510px-Skull_and_crossbones.svg.png.
3: "Cotton Farming." WWF. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://wwf.panda.org/about_our_earth/about_freshwater/freshwater_problems/thirsty_crops/cotton/.
4: "The Cost of Cotton: Dirty Cotton." People & Planet. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://peopleandplanet.org/redressfashion/briefing/dirty.
Figure 3: "Aral Sea." Digital image. The Aral Sea Crisis. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://www.columbia.edu/~tmt2120/aral_sea_2006.jpg.
5: "Polyester." Wikipedia. May 30, 2014. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyester.
6: "Nylon." Wikipedia. May 30, 2014. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nylon.
7: "Environmental Impacts." Green Choices. Accessed June 02, 2014. http://www.greenchoices.org/green-living/clothes/environmental-impacts.
Figure 4: "Skull and Crossbones." Digital image. Wikipedia. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/53/Skull_and_crossbones.svg/510px-Skull_and_crossbones.svg.png.