How to Adapt Sustainability in Conflicting Industries

When Sustainability Conflicts with Businesses: How to Adapt?

In today's world, environmental issues are gaining global attention, leading many industries to face significant challenges. This is especially true for industries often perceived as "villains" in environmental destruction. However, even industries that seem contrary to the idea of sustainability can adapt and evolve just like other businesses. In this article, we will explore three industries currently facing sustainability challenges and reveal adaptation strategies that can help these businesses thrive in an era when consumers are increasingly focused on "eco-friendliness."

3 Industries that Seem Contrary to Sustainability Trends but Are Adapting

1. The Plastic Industry

The plastic industry is one of the most criticized for its environmental impact, including issues like plastic waste in the oceans, long degradation times, and the use of fossil resources in production. Despite the challenge of maintaining this industry in an increasingly environmentally conscious world, adaptation is not impossible.

Sustainability Adaptation Strategies for the Plastic Industry

Bioplastics

Bioplastics are made from agricultural materials such as corn, sugarcane, and cassava. They are biodegradable and decompose faster than conventional plastics, helping to reduce the amount of plastic waste in nature, especially in waterways and oceans. Additionally, using agricultural raw materials reduces reliance on fossil resources, which are limited and contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.

Advanced Recycling

Chemical recycling is an innovation that reprocesses used plastics into raw materials without losing material quality, allowing for multiple reuse cycles. This method not only reduces plastic waste but also decreases energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from new plastic production. It also addresses complex plastic waste management issues, such as mixed plastics or plastics with other contaminants.

Design for Recycling

Historically, plastic product designs did not consider recycling processes. Today, the concept of design for recycling is gaining popularity. This involves improving product design to make recycling easier, thus reducing unnecessary plastic waste. Good design considers easy disassembly, minimizing the use of chemicals that may hinder recycling, and using 100% recyclable materials like monomaterial plastics.

Marine Degradable Plastics

Beyond the issue of plastic waste accumulation in oceans, there are also microplastics that break off from regular plastics, affecting aquatic life. Therefore, developing plastics that can degrade in marine environments is an important goal. Such plastics help reduce plastic waste in water and maintain marine ecosystem balance amid the plastic pollution crisis.

2. The Textile and Fashion Industry

When discussing industries that impact the environment, many people think of the textile and fashion industry. This includes concerns about water usage, chemical emissions, and waste generated from producing Fast Fashion garments, which consumers often wear only a few times before discarding. However, this industry can also adapt to a more sustainable model.

Sustainability Adaptation Strategies for the Textile and Fashion Industry

Sustainable Materials

Choosing environmentally friendly materials is a crucial step towards sustainability in the textile and fashion industry. Increasingly popular materials include organic natural fibers such as organic cotton, hemp, and linen, which are grown without harmful chemicals and pesticides, reducing soil and water contamination. Additionally, recycled fibers, such as those made from PET plastic bottles, offer a promising alternative, helping to reduce plastic waste and the natural resources needed to produce new fibers.

Eco-Friendly Dyeing Processes

Dyeing in the textile industry is a resource-intensive process that uses large amounts of water and releases harmful chemicals into wastewater. However, more sustainable dyeing techniques are emerging, such as dry dyeing, which uses less water, and natural dyes that are biodegradable, reducing the release of toxic chemicals into water sources.

Circular Fashion

One popular approach is clothing rental, where consumers can rent garments for short periods instead of buying new ones. This reduces the accumulation of unused clothing in wardrobes. Additionally, buying second-hand clothes and recycling old garments are effective strategies. Recycling old clothes allows fibers to be reused and decreases the amount of clothing waste sent to landfills.

On-Demand Production

Fast Fashion typically involves mass production to meet market demand and rapidly changing fashion trends. The issue is that excess production often leads to unsold clothes being discarded or discounted, resulting in wasted resources and energy. On-demand manufacturing, which uses technology to produce garments based on actual orders, can address this issue. For example, 3D printing technology can produce custom clothing and reduce resource waste and greenhouse gas emissions from production and transportation processes.

3. The Automotive Industry

The automotive industry is often viewed as contrary to sustainability principles due to the significant environmental impact associated with vehicle production and use. This includes fossil fuel consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, and waste generated from end-of-life vehicles. However, like the previous two industries, the automotive sector can also adapt to environmental trends in surprising ways.

Sustainability Adaptation Strategies for the Automotive Industry

Electric Vehicles (EVs)

The most noticeable adaptation in recent times is the development of electric vehicles. EVs produce no greenhouse gas emissions during use, which helps reduce carbon dioxide emissions and air pollution. They also decrease reliance on fossil fuels, which are limited resources with environmental impacts.

Eco-Friendly Manufacturing

This includes using renewable energy in manufacturing facilities, reducing water and chemical usage in vehicle production, and increasing the use of recycled materials in vehicle components. These practices not only minimize environmental impacts but also can lower long-term production costs.

Hybrid Vehicles and Alternative Fuel Vehicles

In addition to electric vehicles, hybrid cars that combine fossil fuel engines with electric motors are an option for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Vehicles that use alternative fuels, such as hydrogen and biofuels, are also a promising direction for the automotive industry to meet sustainability demands.

Although these industries face significant environmental challenges, there are pathways and opportunities for achieving sustainability. By integrating technological innovations, changing consumer behaviors, and supportive government policies, these industries can ultimately align with sustainable development principles.