Blue Planet Babe

👠 From Runways to Rivers: How Fashion is Tackling Water Challenges – A Series 🌊

Did you know the fashion industry guzzles 93 billion cubic meters of water every year? That’s 4% of global freshwater extraction—and if we don’t change course, this could double by 2030! 😱

We all know fashion’s water footprint is wild:
👖 One pair of jeans → 10,850 liters
🛏️ A single bed sheet → 9,750 liters
👕 One t-shirt → 2,720 liters
👶 One diaper → 810 liters

But wait, it gets worse…
🚨 15-35% of irrigated water withdrawals in cotton-growing regions are already unsustainable.
💚 Organic cotton uses 91% less blue water and creates 5x less grey water pollution than conventional cotton.
🌊 Textile dyeing and treatment = 20% of the world’s freshwater pollution.
💔 By 2030, 4 billion people will face severe water stress, while demand for freshwater will exceed supply by 40%.
🎨 Every year, 200,000 tonnes of dyes (worth $1 billion) are wasted due to inefficient dyeing and finishing.
(Source: Ellen MacArthur Foundation, A new textiles economy: Redesigning fashion’s future (2017), Maxwell, D. McAndrew, L. Ryan, J. 2015, The State of the Apparel Sector 2015 Special Report)

As a vintage thrift girlie, it breaks my heart to see the fashion industry’s water waste. But let’s spill the tea—are brands actually stepping up? ☕
Each post, we’ll dive into a few companies to see their initiatives, targets, and progress. Who’s walking the walk and who’s just rocking the runway? 👀💃 Stay tuned! 🚀💙

This week, we’re looking at adidas and Gap—two brands making strides in water sustainability. Here’s what stood out:

🔍 Leading in Transparency – Adidas is aligning with the EU Taxonomy, ensuring water is a key sustainability component in its 2024 disclosure.
🚰 Reducing Water Pollution in Tanneries – Adidas is focusing on effluent treatment to minimize the environmental impact of the tanning process.
👟 Supporting Suppliers with Water Management – Adidas provides technical guidance to help suppliers improve water efficiency, including water recycling, cooling water reuse, and reverse osmosis effluent treatment.

🌍 Driving Water Innovation – Gap Inc.’s Global Water Innovation Center (with Arvind Limited) is pioneering water reduction technologies, while 52 facilities are improving efficiency through the Clean by Design program.
🤝 Powerful Partnerships for Change – The USAID Women + Water Alliance has already improved clean water and sanitation access for 2.4M+ people in India, while the Water Resilience Coalition backed by Cargill and GSK is working toward sustainable water access for 300M people and impact in 100 basins.
💙 My Water Crush, Matt Damon, Approves– Gap Inc. is backing WaterEquity’s $150M Global Access Fund IV, alongside the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation, Starbucks, Ecolab, Reckitt, and DuPont, to help financial institutions scale water and sanitation lending in emerging markets. 🚰✨

9 months ago | [YT] | 0