The increasing purchasing power of consumers in emerging economies and the rise of the fast fashion industry have led to a substantial increase in the number and frequency of clothing purchases. These changes have not only contributed to the booming textile industry, but also increased the environmental impact of the garment production process.

Viscose is a man-made fiber and one of the earliest chemical fibers to be put into industrial production. It is mainly made of regenerated cellulose or wood pulp. Because of its good moisture absorption, comfortable wearing and excellent spinnability, it is widely welcomed by clothing manufacturers and consumers.

At present, the use of viscose fibers ranks third in the global fiber products. Its degradable properties make it a man-made fiber using petrochemical raw materials and a substitute for cotton fiber, which consumes a lot of water in the production process. It has become one of the most widely used fibers in the world.

China is the third largest viscose fiber producer in the world. Although Austria's Lenzing Group and India's Aditya Birla Group occupy the top two positions in the viscose fiber market, Chinese companies dominate the industry in terms of total volume. In 2017, the global annual production of viscose staple fiber (VSF) was about 5 million tons, of which 3.6 million tons came from China.

Environmental concerns of viscose fiber

Despite its many advantages, viscose fibres also have a non-negligible impact on the environment in the production process like other textile products.

Environmental impacts include:

The raw material mainly comes from wood. Uncontrolled, deforestation can have devastating effects on ancient forests and endangered tree species. According to data collected by CanopyStyle, an environmental protection organization, the dissolving wood pulp used in viscose fiber wastes up to 70% of wood in production. In the viscose fiber used in the clothing industry, 30% of the raw materials are made from ancient forests. Composition of trees and endangered species

Wastewater containing toxic chemicals from the fiber production process pollutes water resources. In production, enterprises are still using toxic chemicals to convert wood pulp into viscose fibers, and the discharged wastewater contains sulfuric acid, sulfate, sulfur and sulfide and other pollutants, as well as metal pollutants such as zinc salts. Carbon disulfide (CS2), an important chemical in viscose processing, is toxic and can cause serious health problems. Inadequately treated wastewater also contains a lot of organic matter, which will increase the chemical oxygen demand (COD) and reduce the oxygen content in the water body, resulting in the death of aquatic organisms

Although it will cause some pollution, the strict control of the supply chain by viscose fiber manufacturers can minimize the impact of the production process on the environment.

In order to reduce environmental pollution, the European Union issued the Best Available Technology (BAT) reference guide for the production of polymer materials in 2007. The guidelines specify the best technologies for the environmentally friendly production of synthetic materials and cellulosic fibers (including viscose fibers).

Lenzing Group's current factories in Austria and Nanjing, China have passed BAT verification and are reforming other factories; India's Aditya Birla Group has formulated factory reform standards in accordance with BAT requirements.

Changing Markets found in its investigation that the EU has the most detailed and strictest requirements for the production of viscose fibers: it not only stipulates the emission standards for chemical substances in the production process of viscose fibers, but also specifies the content of pollutants in the air and water.

Eight of the world's largest apparel brands and retailers: ASOS, C&A, Esprit, H&M, Inditex, M&S, Next and Tesco have publicly expressed their support for the environmentally friendly production of viscose.

China's Sustainable Development Initiatives

In order to better realize the sustainable development of the viscose fiber industry, in March 2018, the regenerated cellulose fiber industry green, composed of ten largest viscose fiber manufacturers in China, as well as the China Chemical Fiber Industry Association and the China Cotton Textile Industry Association The Collaboration for Sustainable Development of Viscose was officially established. In August 2018, they released a three-year industrial plan aimed at promoting sustainable development in the procurement and production of viscose fibers.

According to these standards, members will certify production processes and raw materials, and strictly follow industry plans to standardize production processes and reduce pollution. for example:

Raw materials use wood from sustainable forest areas certified by The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) or Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)

Follow Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) wastewater guidelines

Certification of production facilities according to Sustainable Textile Production (STeP), a sustainable development programme by OEKO-TEX, a service provider for sustainable textile production

Corporate assessment using Higg, the Apparel and Footwear Industry Self-Assessment Standard, launched in 2012 by the Sustainable Apparel Coalition

The alliance believes that if members can meet the basic requirements of the development plan by June 2019, and the advanced requirements by the end of 2020, these enterprises are likely to achieve certain environmental standards within three years.