Transport

CO2-balance

Compared with natural fibres, man-made fibres offer the extra advantage that they can be manufactured wherever there are markets with a demand for them. Grasslands and arable areas cannot be created just anywhere – unlike production plants for man-made fibres.

Transporting textiles across the globe makes little sense ecologically, even less so if they are made of man-made fibres. But also T-shirts made of biologically grown cotton may have flown half across the globe. For example, an item of clothing made in China is transported over a distance of ca. 19 000 km to the final consumer in Europe. If transported by ship, some 0.4 kg of CO2 is emitted per kg of textile.

In air transport, the eco-balance deteriorates by ca. 10 kg of CO2. Assuming that textile production exclusively in Europe would involve transport distances of ca. 2 000 km, in European rail transport ca. 0.04 kg and in air transport ca. 1 kg of CO2 would be calculated in an eco-balance for the transport of textiles. Considering that ca. 90 % of textiles offered in Germany are imported, the ecological benefits of manufacturing man-made fibres and textiles close to their consumers are obvious

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