ENVI

Fast and Fashion-Furious: Numerous fashion companies opt to use inexpensive and environmentally hazardous materials as the demand for affordable clothing has been rapidly increasing. What measures can the EU implement to protect the environment from the dangers associated with the fast fashion industry?

Fast and Fashion Furious: Numerous fashion companies opt to use inexpensive and environmentally hazardous materials as the demand for affordable clothing has been rapidly increasing. What measures can the EU implement to protect the environment from the dangers associated with the fast fashion industry?

Submitted by: Julia Beukema (NL), Merel Droog (NL), Mylène Goud (NL), Sanne Hazes (NL), Nadir Luijten (NL),  Saarah McCloskey (IE), Ide Niessen (NL); Chaired by: Tess Nealon (IE)

The European Youth Parliament,

  1. Observing that greenwashing is still prevalent among fast fashion retailers,
  2. Deeply concerned by the pressure placed on water and land use by the fast fashion industry, 
  3. Noting with regret that 35% of the microplastics and hazardous chemicals from discarded synthetic clothing released into the environment pose a grave health risk to the general population, 
  4. Alarmed that the fast fashion industry is responsible for 10% of global carbon emissions,
  5. Deploring the general overconsumption and disposal of textiles  among European citizens, 
  6. Regretting that clothes are generally not recycled, with 87% of used clothes being incinerated or sent to landfill;

The Committee,

  1. Urges the Directorate General on Environment (DG-ENV)  to encourage sustainability by enforcing the EU Ecolabel1 on all textile products on the market;
  2. Calls upon the Director of Media at the European Parliament to promote education about the negative effects of fast fashion on the environment and human health by establishing a media campaign;
  3. Encourages the Directorate General on Financial Stability (DG-FISMA)  to increase the tax on the import of products which do not meet the EU Ecolabel criteria;
  4. Invites the Member States to maintain continued economic accessibility and increase the popularity of second-hand and charity shops by providing financial subsidies for these businesses;
  5. Further urges the DG-ENV to regulate the accumulation of textile waste by establishing a framework for clothing companies to recycle or donate their unused products.
  1. Launched in 1992, the EU Ecolabel logo has become a byword for quality while meeting the highest environmental standards. It means products (goods and services) displaying the iconic “EU flower” symbol meet all the criteria and have earned the right to join the growing EU Ecolabel Community ↩︎