Vol. 10, Special Issue 8 (2021)

Author(s):
Shalini Rukhaya, Saroj Yadav, Neelam M Rose, Arpita Grover and Diksha Bisht

Abstract:
The fashion industry is experiencing increasing global scrutiny of its environmentally polluting supply chain operations. In spite of the widely publicized impacts on environment, however, the industry continues to grow, in part because of the rise of fast fashion. The term fast fashion means low-cost clothing collections that take off current luxury fashion trends. Fast fashion helps to satisfy deeply held desires among young consumers in the developed world for luxury fashion, even as it embodies unsustainability. Environmental sustainability can be a centerpiece for managers working across industries that have negative impact on the environment and the fashion industry is not an exception. Impacts from the fashion industry comprise over 92 million tonnes of waste produced per year and 79 trillion litres of water consumed. From the growth of water-intensive cotton, to the release of untreated dyes into local water sources; the environmental and social costs included in textile production are widespread. Due to the heavy production, use and dispose of, the textile and fashion industry has a large environmental impact in every stage of product life cycle. Therefore, fashion industry urgently needs to address its unsustainable practices. The rising public awareness of environmental issues during the last decade has urged clothing retailers and manufacturers to adopt sustainable practices for minimizing the environmental impacts