Ghana (Common Wealth) _ Ghana, a small but lovely West African country, is well renowned for its lush beaches, vast forests, and rich history. However, a catastrophic environmental disaster has just erupted in the country’s main city of Accra, affecting both the inhabitants and the rest of the world.
Who is to be blamed? Fast fashion.
Every week, around 15 million articles of worn clothing arrive in Ghana’s Kantamanto Market. The majority of these shipments are made up of unsold items from thrift stores and charities all across the world. To put that figure in context, Ghana has a population of only 30 million people.
Many shoppers worldwide prefer to give their used clothing to charitable organizations such as Goodwill or local thrift stores or consignment businesses such as Plato’s Closet. While most people have noble intentions behind this behavior, the reality is not that admirable. Many donations are shipped to Accra.
Clothing is purchased and sold on the market upon arrival in order to make a profit. According to local officials, the industry has created 2.5 million jobs; however, it should be noted that this figure is impossible to verify.
Buyers would acquire shipments in the early days of this niche trade and receive products in good condition that sold well on the market. As a result, a modest but sustainable revenue was achieved. However, despite an increase in manufacturing in recent years, the quality of fast fashion products has substantially declined. As a result, the clothes received by Ghanaian purchasers has grown increasingly difficult to market.
Nothing regarding the contents of the dozens of clothes shipments that arrive in Accra every week is disclosed to customers prior to their arrival. Clothing that is ripped, discolored, or otherwise damaged, as most used clothing today is, is judged useless, unsellable, and is discarded.
According to ABC Foreign Correspondent, “6 million garments leave Kantamanto Market every week as waste.” A country as small as Ghana is not equipped to handle such trash output, especially since it receives little to no support from the countries producing the problem.
Ghana’s landfills are overflowing. Attempts to downplay the problem have mainly failed. In one case, a landfill caught fire due to methane gas entrapment within such a small perimeter. That fire lasted for 11 months, damaging the atmosphere and the surrounding area.
The implications of Ghana’s problem are not restricted to the country. This affects everyone since it extends into our atmosphere and oceans.
Fast fashion firms are increasingly using synthetic fabrics such as spandex, polyester, and nylon; however, these textiles are not eco-friendly and can take up to 200 years to degrade, emitting damaging methane emissions in the process. According to the BBC, waste clothing accounts for 10% of greenhouse gas emissions.
Not only is the atmosphere polluted, but so is the ground. Clothing that cannot be disposed of in landfills often clogs local streets or swarms beaches in the shape of mountains.
Clothing waste spills out into the ocean from Ghana’s beaches, forming “tentacles,” or long strips of fabric that sink to the ocean floor. These strips destabilize marine ecosystems and endanger the health of marine species.
Views like the one above have become and will continue to be a frequent sight for families in Ghana, regardless of their location. Fast fashion is converting people’s homes and livelihoods into dumping grounds. Ghana is rapidly turning into a breeding ground for injustice, Pollution, sickness, and all the other factors that contribute to a low level of living are all factors. The effects will be felt not only by individuals who live on these fabric-stained streets, but also around the world in the form of greenhouse gases and the very real threat of climate change.
Fast fashion consumption harms the ecology and social well-being of places like Accra. Being an ethical consumer entails taking into account places like Ghana when making purchasing decisions.
