UK carbon footprint 2006

The carbon footprint of clothing - Terramar does it better for less

A recent report from the Government backed Carbon Trust [http://www.carbontrust.co.uk/about/presscentre/061206_Carbonfootprint.htm] shows that on average each UK citizen causes 10.62 tons of carbon emissions a year.

carbon footprint graphic

Surprisingly our recreational activities are causing the highest emission levels. Transform Scotland [http://www.transformscotland.org.uk/] estimate that the majority of car journeys are less than five miles long and one must presume that car journeys to the gym, cinema etc. are having a significant impact on the recreation figures. Better public transport, more and improved cycle ways and leg power are obvious and simple solutions here.

Heating, food and household follow recreation in emissions. It is clear that food miles are having a significant impact on the figures for food, reducing the distance that food travels is a must and will help to stimulate economic growth in local markets. Both household and hygiene make such a large impact due to their dependence on high energy chemical processes. Using natural products such as plant based soups is one solution here.

Clothing is responsible for approximately 1 ton CO2 per individual. This figure includes emissions from the chemical processes used to manufacture and transport the items, emissions from water heating and wet appliances used in cleaning, drying and pressing clothes.

Various factors are at play; the most significant of these are the intensity of conventional cotton farming and the reliance on petro-chemical fertilisers, pesticides and herbicides, the reliance on chemical processes to manufacture and finish cheap garments, and finally the distance that most textiles travel (the majority of textile manufacturing is in South East Asia, China and India ).

When you buy an organic cotton garment from Marks and Sparks or even many of the smaller specialist UK companies it has most probably been manufactured in China or India so adding to the carbon footprint.

Terramar Organics is, as ever, ahead of the game. The majority of our products have been manufactured in Turkey. This significantly reduces transport miles to the UK and so the carbon footprint of our sustainable garments. In addition to the manufacturing, much of the cotton used in the production of our sustainable textile products is grown in Turkey further reducing the carbon footprint. Finally, because organic cotton doesnâ??t rely on the use of vast quantities of petro-chemical pesticides/herbicides etc. less energy is wasted during the growing of the cotton plant.

Sustainable textiles have a naturally lower footprint than conventional textiles, when additional considerations such as point of manufacture are considered than an even lower carbon foot can be achieved.

carbon footprint graphic

Below are the figures broken into ten divisions - Total: 10.62 tons

  1. Recreation 1.95 tons
  2. Heating 1.49 tons
  3. Food 1.39 tons
  4. Household 1.37 tons
  5. Hygiene 1.34 tons
  6. Clothing 1.00 tons
  7. Commuting 0.81 tons
  8. Aviation 0.68 tons
  9. Education 0.49 tons
  10. Phones 0.1 tons

Clothing footprint

Carbon emissions for clothing can be further broken down:
Washing 100kg
New clothes 70kg
Tumble drying 36kg

 

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