The apparel and footwear industries generate significant global pollution impacts. For example, making one pair of jeans produces as much greenhouse gases as driving a car more than 80 miles, making reducing CO₂ emissions and scaling clean energy a priority for Aii. In fact, a large portion of that impact is a result of dyeing and finishing processes, which occur within textile mills.We are meeting the industry’s need to reduce such environmental impacts, including supporting the United Nations’ goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

Despite the fact that our planet is more than ⅔ water, water scarcity is a major global threat.
Billions of people around the world lack access to water, so it is crucial that we work with textile mills and other stakeholders in the industry to manage and measure their water impacts – specifically how water is used within the supply chain. Wet processing has some of the biggest impacts on freshwater withdrawal. Globally, water used in textile production adds up to nearly 25 trillion gallons and about 20% of industrial water pollution as the result of garment manufacturing.

The use of harmful chemicals at textile mills affects both environmental health and human
health, from the moments the chemicals are used in a mill until they are discharged into the
environment, causing pollution. For mills to improve their chemical usage, we support a shift to safer materials, green chemistry and effective wastewater treatment.

The selection of materials used in textile mills is critical, because it relates directly to CO₂ and water impacts. In terms of production, each type of fabric that become a piece of apparel or footwear has embedded levels of energy, water and labor intensity. For instance, a polyester shirt has more than double the carbon footprint of a cotton shirt – so material impact is always taken into account in scaling improvements.