THE DEVASTATION CAUSED BY FAST FASHION.

Fashion has a significant impact on the environment, both in terms of the resources used to create clothing and the waste generated during production and disposal. Here are some of the ways in which fashion affects the environment:

1. Water usage: The fashion industry uses large amounts of water to grow cotton and to dye and finish fabrics. This puts pressure on water resources, particularly in areas where water is already scarce.
2. Energy usage: Manufacturing clothing requires a lot of energy, both in terms of powering factories and in the production of synthetic fabrics. This leads to the emission of greenhouse gases and contributes to climate change.
3. Chemical usage: Many of the chemicals used in the production of clothing, such as dyes and bleaches, are toxic and can harm the environment and the people who work with them.
4. Waste: The fashion industry produces a lot of waste, both in the form of discarded fabrics and in the disposal of clothing that is no longer wanted or needed. Much of this waste ends up in landfills or is incinerated, which can have negative environmental impacts.
5. Microplastics: Synthetic fabrics such as polyester shed microplastic fibers when washed, which can end up in waterways and harm marine life.
6. Finally and a subject not given enough coverage is the shameful inequality between the destitute works in underdeveloped countries and the billionaire owners in the wealthy west which promote the products through numerous advertising methods showing only the glitzy side.

A hard hitting book by Aja Barber “Consumed” that traces the history from Colonialism and its lasting legacy for under developed countries where poverty forces people to work in an industry that creates obscene wealth in the affluent west and environmental catastrophes in parts of the world that can least afford more disasters.