the problem with "fast fashion"

if i'm not obsessing about my healthy food choices (go veggie or not? buy local? buy organic? recyclable packaging?), now i'm worried about my clothing choices... i never really thought about it much, except to look for sweatshop free options. and it's not easy to find reasonably priced clothes (suits, jeans) that aren't made in third world countries under extremely horrible conditions. but all this worrying has helped my budget... i spend way less on clothes and have a functional, but limited wadrobe (good for my small closet).

thanks to grist, i found this in-depth article from environmental health perspectives and realized there is a reason to be seriously worried about our country's need for "fast fashion" -- cheap, endless clothing options that get used and then discarded swiftly:

• For example, polyester, the most widely used manufactured fiber, is made from petroleum. With the the rise in production in the fashion industry, demand for man-made fibers, especially polyester, has nearly doubled in the last 15 years, according to figures from the Technical Textile Markets. The manufacture of polyester and other synthetic fabrics is an energy-intensive process requiring large amounts of crude oil and releasing emissions including volatile organic compounds, particulate matter, and acid gases such as hydrogen chloride, all of which can cause or aggravate respiratory disease. Volatile monomers, solvents, and other by-products of polyester production are emitted in the wastewater from polyester manufacturing plants. The EPA, under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, considers many textile manufacturing facilities to be hazardous waste generators. see photo: waste products from a garment factory in Dhaka, Bangladesh, spill into a stagnant pond.


• Once bought, an estimated 21% of annual clothing purchases stay in the home, increasing the stocks of clothing and other textiles held by consumers, according to Recycling of Low Grade Clothing Waste, a September 2006 report by consultant Oakdene Hollins. The report calls this stockpiling an increase in the "national wardrobe," which is considered to represent a potentially large quantity of latent waste that will eventually enter the solid waste stream. According to the EPA Office of Solid Waste, Americans throw away more than 68 pounds of clothing and textiles per person per year, and clothing and other textiles represent about 4% of the municipal solid waste. But this figure is rapidly growing.
  

stuff you can do:

**thrift shop when possible... i recommend housing works thrift shops in nyc (either for donating or buying). you can find high end clothes, gently used, and all sorts of accessories for cheap.

**buy alternative fibers such as bamboo and hemp, explore other eco-fashions and sweatshop free clothes. see also REI's eco-sensitive products.

**buy less stuff... ask if you really need that item? save some bucks and space in your closet.

**save energy... wash your clothes in warm or cold water instead of hot. and set up a clothesline to reduce your energy bill. i have a makeshift clothesline on my fire escape. i save quarters, conserve energy & our clothes have a nice, fresh scent (less wear & tear than the dryer)!