Urgent and effective decarbonization efforts are required to limit global warming to the 1.5°C target set by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2015. According to the IPCC, the industrial sector, which includes textile manufacturing, is responsible for 24% (14 GtCO2-eq) of total net greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). More specifically, the fashion industry accounts for an estimated 10% of total global carbon emissions when considering the production, use, and disposal stages of a textile product. Therefore, several countries, including Canada, have set targets for reaching net-zero GHG emissions by 2050. The Government of Canada has also created the Net-Zero Challenge for businesses to commit to net-zero emissions within their operations by 2050.
In 2022, the CTIA’s Environment and Sustainable Development Committee ran a pilot project alongside Global Innovative Tech and W2R Solutions to determine the operational carbon emissions of 8 facilities in Canada and the US, including four participating members from CTIA. The study involved calculating the scope 1 and 2 emissions of the facilities based on gas and electricity usage for one year of operations and comparing the resulting carbon emissions to global textile hotspots such as India, China, and Germany. The results of the pilot study demonstrated that Canada’s average carbon footprint is significantly less intensive (120g CO2-eg/kWh) than the comparison countries due to the use of renewable energy in provinces like Ontario and Quebec.
