HOW GREEN IS GREEN REALLY?

With the green trend being all the rage in current season’s the eco-conscious debate has come front and center. We would like to think that everyone wants to help the earth in any way in this age of global warming.

But to be green is not as easy as selecting hemp or soy-based fabrics as reporter Eric Wilson reported in the International Herald Tribune: “Fabrics made from bamboo or hemp, for example, are promoted as having been raised without pesticides and also for growing much faster than cotton. But the downside is that bamboo or hemp fibers are naturally tough and are typically softened before being woven into fabric by using chemical treatments, which cause more pollution.

Naturally softer fabrics made from soy have a mild impact compared to cotton, according to environmental groups, but they are less durable, so clothes wear out faster and have to be replaced more often — which has an environmental cost of its own.”

But without thorough regulation it can be hard to gauge how green a garment really is. Sure it may be made with more environmentally friendly fabrics, but if these fabrics require chemical treatments to make them wearable how green is green?

Eco Fashion? A World Consumed By Guilt [IHT]