Fast fashion is an environmental nightmare. However, the true effect of this billion-dollar industry is often hidden behind closed doors.
Fashion enthusiast and TikToker Adelaide (@stitfm2u) shared a disturbing video revealing the reality of fast fashion and its impact on the environment. The video follows Adelaide walking past mountains of textile waste as a result of the fast fashion industry.
@stitfm2u ew fast fashion #y2k ♬ I Think I Like When It Rains - WILLIS
Gaining 2.7 million views and sparking over a thousand comments, the video went viral on TikTok. Internet users were shocked and disappointed to see the insane amount of clothing waste.
"This really needs to be made more aware to the public," wrote one TikToker. "Most people have no idea how serious this is."
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"Fast fashion is wild to me," wrote another user.
While fast fashion is cheap for consumers, it's incredibly costly for the environment.
To manufacture a significant amount of clothes for a fraction of the cost, fast fashion companies utilize non-renewable sources of energy on top of highly toxic chemicals.
The fast fashion industry not only relies on dirty energy, but it also uses a tremendous amount of water. In fact, fast fashion is the second-biggest consumer of water, according to a report by the UN Environmental Program.
Instead of purchasing cheap, poorly made items from fast fashion companies, consider shopping second-hand.
Buying your clothes at thrift stores is a great way to save money and reduce your environmental footprint. By swapping just half your annual purchases with second-hand finds, you can save up to $100 each year.
The more you shop second-hand, the more you help keep clothes out of landfills where they release harmful, planet-warming gases.
TikTokers continued to discuss the problem of fast fashion and textile waste.
"It's such a foreign concept to me that people throw away completely new clothes from fast fashion just because they are out of trend," wrote one user.
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