Toxic
ThreadS
How big brands are making consumers unwitting accomplices in the toxic water cycle
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Contents executive Summary Section 1: introduction Section 2: Methodology and results Section 3: Fast fashion: more fashion, more toxics Section 4: conclusions and recommendations Appendix 1 Appendix 2 Appendix 3 Endnotes 31 39 42 46 48 52 3 9 13 acknowledgements: We would like to thank the following people who contributed to the creation of this report. If we have forgotten anyone, they know that our gratitude is also extended to them. Kevin Brigden, Kristin Casper, Madeleine Cobbing, Tommy Crawford, Alexandra Dawe, Steve Erwood, Marietta Harjono, Martin Hojsik, Yifang Li, Tristan Tremschnig, Ieva Vilimaviciute, Yuntao Wang, Matthias Wüthrich Creative Direction by: Tommy Crawford Design, Art Direction and Crime Scene concept by: Toby Cotton @ Arc Communications Front and back cover images © Lance Lee/Greenpeace Toxic Threads: The Big Fashion Stitch-Up JN 429a Published October 2012 by Greenpeace international Ottho Heldringstraat 5, 1066 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands greenpeace.org
Terminology used in this report
Bioaccumulation: The mechanism by which chemicals accumulate in living organisms and get passed along the food chain. hormone disruptors: Chemicals known to interfere with hormone systems of organisms. For nonylphenol, the most widely recognised hazard is the ability to mimic natural oestrogen hormones. This can lead to altered sexual development in some organisms, most notably the feminisation of fish*. Persistence: The property of a chemical whereby it does not degrade in the environment, or degrades very slowly. Plastisol: A suspension of plastic particles, commonly PVC or EVA, in a plasticiser. Used as ink for screen-printing images and logos onto textiles. Surfactants: Chemicals used to lower the surface tension of liquids. They include wetting agents, detergents, emulsifiers,