11. Stopping Shopping
Not sure which way you make the most pollution? Find out.
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No one can stop shopping entirely, but if you could (almost) kick the habit, it would help.
There's much too much abuse and pollution in the shopping supply chain.
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For example:
Animal Skins:
“‘Fashion is a terrible excuse for animal exploitation’.”
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“In 2020, Stockholm Fashion Week kicked off with a ban on exotic skins, meaning no crocodile, snake, ostrich, or alligator skin.”
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By Nina Bazza - https://www.four-paws.org/, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=77747637
Cotton:
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“‘Cotton defoliants are ‘the most toxic farm chemicals currently on the market’.”
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Too much cotton comes from the forced labor of Uyhgurs in Xinjiang.
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Synthetic fabrics:
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“From the extraction of the raw materials to the wastewater from the dyes… synthetic fabric is environmentally problematic.”
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Garment workers:
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“The clothing industry...employs every sixth person on Earth...the apparel trade has exploited labor [and] the environment.”
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“Systemic human rights abuses pervade the global garment industry.”
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Clothes:
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​"Textile dyeing is one of the most polluting aspects of the global fashion industry" (see photo). The "fabric-dyeing industry...uses trillions of gallons of water a year."
"The fashion industry...is responsible for up to 10% of global carbon emissions." “Clothes account for a massive, and growing, pile of waste that ends up in landfills.”
“Three East African countries stood up to the industry and initiated a ban on secondhand clothing” imports.
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Fast Fashion:
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It can be difficult to connect all the dots that lead from glamorous runways and fashion houses...to miserable third world workers and polluted weather.
“The energy-intensive fast-fashion sector…has become notorious for…chemicals that quickly end up in landfills and oceans.”
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The ultra-fast-fashion company Shein, “has poured significant funds into Google and Facebook advertising campaigns, influencer deals, and even its own social-media reality show…
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Ultra-fast-fashion will only keep ticking up in speed… as long as consumers continue to...buy.”
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Delivery
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Trucks:
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“Heavy-duty trucks are responsible for nearly a quarter of the greenhouse gas emissions
from the nation’s transportation sector”...
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“Tractor-trailers, delivery vans, and heavier-duty pickup trucks…
[emit]...45% of nitrogen oxide emissions and 57% of…PM 2.5.”
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“Electrifying delivery vehicles would take [a large] bite out of carbon emissions”
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"The port of Los Angeles...shows apparent increases in NO2 [pollution] in October
2021" due to "record-breaking backlogs of container ships idling offshore."
Ships:
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“90% of the world’s trade is carried via ocean traffic”, and container ships are “some of the biggest and dirtiest machines on the planet.”
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“Cargo ships…burn some of the world’s dirtiest and carbon- intensive fuels.” “Ships are acting as hazardous waste incinerators for the world’s oil refineries.”
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"The dumping of rubbish resulting from the routine operations of ships, and from illegal activities...are major sources of pollution."
Ocean accidents:
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“The Sri Lankan…Navy said...The ship’s crew were aware of [the nitric acid] leak...
and had sought to dock in Qatar and India but were denied permission." June 2021
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"An abandoned cargo ship packed with cars is adrift in the Atlantic Ocean, after a rapidly- spreading fire..." February 2022
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What To Do?
Recycling?
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I'm sorry to report that except for paper/cardboard, bottles, and tin/aluminium, many "recycled" materials get incinerated or dumped - in the US or elsewhere.
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Reuse or Repair
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Support Right-to-Repair legislation. If we fix old stuff, instead of dumping old stuff and buying new stuff, there’ll be less stuff
in our oceans and atmosphere - see more on stuff below.
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Not the best at fixing things? See if there’s a Repair Cafe (or something similar) near you.
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Buy nothing
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Keep in mind the clever corporate concept of planned obsolescence:
"The ultimate goal is to make you buy products again and again".
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I’ve found that people appreciate a simple home-made-type of gift.
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For more info, read about Buy Nothing Day.
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Buy 2nd hand
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It takes a little time, but you can find good-quality items (including suits and other dress clothing) at second-hand stores.
Re tech items: buying-second-hand-tech
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Search - second hand stores near me
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Consult the scorecards
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Compare different apparel companies at an ethical fashion scorecard.
"The fashion industry continues to rely heavily on coal...plus...fracked gas."
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For electronics, go to: ethicalconsumer.org/technology/shopping-guide/laptops
Too much stuff
"That's all you need in life, a little place for your stuff...If you didn't have so much stuff, you wouldn't need a house...
And when you leave your house, you gotta lock it up. Wouldn't want somebody to come by and take some of your stuff...That's what your house is, a place to keep your stuff while you go out and get...more stuff!"
