TEXTILES AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Environmental impacts can occur at every stage of the textile lifecycle (raw materials,
production, use and disposal), irrespective of fibre type.

There are environmental problems associated with the production of manmade fibres, such as
intensive energy use and generation of hazardous air emissions. There are also potential
environmental problems associated with growing natural fibres, including the use of pesticides
and degradation of the land.

The major positive and negative aspects of the main fibre types are summarised below.

The positive and negative environmental aspects are identified as follows:

positive environmental aspect

negative environmental aspect

NATURAL FIBRES
Cotton
Wool
Flax, Ramie and Hemp
Silk
Bamboo 

MANMADE FIBRES
Bamboo
Rayon, Viscose and Acetate
 
SYNTHETIC
Polyester (PET)
Recycled Polyester (Recycled PET)
Olefin
Nylon
Acrylic
Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)

Click here to download a print friendly version of the Environmental Impact of Fibres.