Raising concern over sustainable issues of apparel industry, Planet Textiles 2017 in Bangalore was truly an international and thought-provoking event. Recently organized by MCL News & Media and the Sustainable Apparel Coalition( SAC), the day-long event which was part of a week-long series of events on environmental and social issues in the textile and clothing sector, witnessed nearly 340 delegates from 25 countries. Water scarcity, chemical management, ZLD, circular economy, were the core points in discussion along with many other burning issues. Proactive apparel industry participation from across India was another good aspect of this event. Like most of the other textile and apparel manufacturing hubs, Bangalore is also suffering from water scarcity which is continuously growing. The worried industry highlighted this aspect in the event also. It was noticed that the way of working poses a real threat to the textile industry in India. Manoj Gulati, ED, Water. org, India shared,“ The value of the Indian textiles industry, currently at US $ 108 billion, is expected to reach US $ 223 billion by 2021. Presently, the Indian textiles sector consumes around 830 million cubic litres of water per annum. This pressure on water availability can
|
only go one way unless we start to act now.” Water. org, an international NGO, works with the likes of IKEA, Gap and Inditex to equip people with the means to access water and sanitation in textile producing regions. It provides micro-loans so that individuals can improve access to water and sanitation through WaterCredit. So far it has helped to supply to 5.2 million people and also provided 99 per cent repayment on these loans.
Adding to the same topic, Tracy Nilsson, Senior Director of Social Environmental Affairs, Adidas Sourcing Ltd., Hong Kong, emphasized to the Indian textile mills present at the event how its tier 1 and tier 2 suppliers are expected to reduce water use to a minimum of 20 per cent by 2020.“ With an increasing and ever-growing issue of water scarcity, we have developed an overall approach to address water efficiency, improve wastewater quality and provide better accessibility to water in communities,” she said.
Connecting the solution to water issue with Zero Liquid Discharge( ZLD) Sajid Hussain, COO, Tamilnadu Water Investment Company Limited, Chennai, noted the value of wastewater use through zero discharge, and stated,“ According to a UNESCO report, India is the
|
Manoj Gulati, ED, Water. org |
Tracy Nilsson, Senior Director of Social Environmental Affairs, Adidas Sourcing Ltd.
Sajid Hussain, COO, Tamilnadu Water Investment Company Limited
|
number one country when it comes to annual groundwater extraction. We remove an average of 251 cu / km( cubic kilometres per year) compared to the USA and China which come at a distant second and both average water extraction rates are around 112 cu / km.” He also referred to the indiscriminate withdrawal of groundwater‘ free of cost’ in most parts of the country, but that costs are now being applied.“ Water has been priced low in many parts,” he said,“ However, the cost of fresh water for the industry is now rising due to scarcity. In Tirupur, it is Rs. 78 / m 3, Vellore Rs. 50 / m 3, and Pali Rs. 100 / m 3.”
Sajid Hussain further explained that there is both an industrial need and a political requirement to tackle this problem as soon as possible but there are technical challenges to overcome for ZLD. The most notable is the problem of waste disposal once wastewater contaminants have been extracted.“ ZLD is a technological challenge, and the focus now must be on Zero Waste Disposal( ZWD). Brine concentration, evaporation, crystallization and disposal are problematic but the focus must be on the recovery and reuse of salts which can be done in practice. At the end, water scarcity, water economics and regulatory pressure will be the main drivers of ZLD and will ultimately
|