This quote from the World Wildlife Foundation says it all:

Less than 1% of the world’s water is readily available for direct human uses

These uses include agriculture and industry, drinking and domestic purposes, and energy generation and transport. Increasing competition for water among such uses is degrading the very natural resources on which we all depend.”

Currently there are three major fabrics used for the production of “green clothing.” How green are each of these fabrics? What is the accountability (transparency) of the supply chain? What are the processing methods? And most importantly for the environment - what is the impact on the world’s water supply.

The Case for Hemp

Pro

• Grows nicely in slightly boggy conditions less suited to food crops
• Good rotation crop
• High yields, with multiple uses
• Short cultivation time — yield in 3-4 months
• With good water table, no irrigation needed

Con

• No domestic production, though several states, including Kentucky and North Dakota, have passed pro-hemp laws
• Lack of transparency for overseas production. Currently all the fiber used in clothing comes from non-western countries such as China, the Philippines, and Russia, none of which are known for documenting sources or growing methods
• Large amounts of water used in the “retting” process
• Needs to be replanted each season

The Case for Organic Cotton

Pro

• No chemical pesticides or fertilizers
• Uses non-genetically modified seed
• Can come from US sources (US, Turkey, and India are the major producers)
• Existing infrastructure for all phases of cotton production and manufacturing

Con

• Massive water use for growing and processing (organic or non-organic). 7,000 to 29,000 liters of water used for each kilogram (2.2 pounds) of cotton produced.
• Needs to be planted each year and rotated out for organic pest control
• Fertilizer intensive
• Only .1% of the worldwide cotton crop is organic

The Case for Bamboo

Pro

• High water efficiency (twice that of trees, comparable to sugar cane)
• Plant it once and harvest for up to 120 years
• Produces 35% more oxygen and consumes four times the CO2 than trees
• Effective for erosion control due to widespread root system
• Helps mitigate water pollution due to high nitrogen consumption
• Requires little attention during growing/production cycle
• Sustainable AND renewable
• Makes shirts softer than hemp or cotton alone

Con

• No US production of fiber, causing a lack of transparency in processing methods
• No organized trade group to fend off attacks by the cotton industry

Conclusions

There have been on-going on-line discussions about the processing methods to get bamboo fibers - the use of heavy caustics such as sodium hydroxide. Also know as caustic soda, it is used in many applications such as food processing, soap making, paper production, and in the manufacture of bio-diesel fuel. It is also used in wet processing of almost all organic cotton fabrics and most hemp fabrics with the exception of a small quantity coming out of Romania. It is approved by the Global Organic Textile Standards.

The discussion of processing methods is a red herring. The real issue is how much water is used to grow the plant, how much fuel is used to plant and re-plant those fields, and how much CO2 is sucked up and oxygen spit out. If you look at those factors - bamboo is clearly the winner.

Hemp Resources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hemp

http://mojo.calyx.net/~olsen/HEMP/IHA/iha01106.html

http://mojo.calyx.net/~olsen/HEMP/IHA/iha02111.html

http://www.green.net.au/gf/hemp_cultivation.htm

http://www.hempusa.org/articles/cleaning-and-softening-hemp.html

Cotton Resources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cotton

http://www.panda.org/about_wwf/what_we_do/policy/agriculture_environment/commodities/cotton/environmental_impacts/water_use/index.cfm

http://www.organicexchange.org/Farm/cotton_facts_intro.htm

http://www.cottonusa.org/whycotton/index.cfm?ItemNumber=808

Bamboo Resources

http://www.worldagroforestrycentre.org/news/Default.asp?NewsID=%7BEABD78F0-AA4C-4DC6-BB10-75BA55B019B2%7D

http://environews.cars-and-trees.com/index.php/2007/12/15/meet-bamboo-the-1-oxygen-maker-of-the-planet/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bamboo

http://attra.ncat.org/attra-pub/bamboo.html

For the most part, they did.

Read the whole article here about the strength and flexibility of bamboo.

I suffer from heat stroke when the temps get high so I need to be pretty careful. I often don’t play golf on those warm days because of it. My brother-in-law gave me one of your little towelettes to try and I’m a convert! I wet it, wrap it around my neck and voila! - instant air-conditioning! What a GREAT product!

Thanks for the recommendation!

The Tampa Tribune

Published: April 23, 2008

It could be the Swiss Army knife of the plant world, but you can’t eat Swiss Army knives.

Click here to read the rest of the article with the nice mention of Shirts of Bamboo.

• Change out that incandescent light bulb for an energy efficient compact fluorescent bulb
• Once you’ve changed out that light bulb…. remember to turn it off when you aren’t using it
• Trade in that gas mower for an electric mower. Your neighbors will appreciate the reduction of noise pollution as well
• Turn down the thermostat on the hot water heater — or better yet, replace it with a high-efficiency on-demand water heater
• Combine all those errands in to one and make a circuit.
• Buy some bamboo clothing.

So, happy Earth Day to all, and to all, a good afternoon.

If Jackie Heinricher’s Chilean feather bamboo hadn’t flowered in her Skagit County garden 10 years ago, we might, this very moment, be snacking on the latest, greatest gourmet craze: crunchy chips made from bamboo shoots.

But flower it did, a once-in-a-century phenomenon. All over the world, from Argentina to Alameda to Anacortes, every clump of Chusquea culeou unfurled fairy-like fans of pointy mauve petals and dancing chartreuse pods. Inside the pods nestled tiny seeds that Heinricher carefully stripped off by hand and germinated with the help of a local tissue-culture lab. It was a horticultural feat that eventually left Heinricher with 10,000 baby bamboos.

Click here for the whole article.

LONDON: It’s no longer enough to live a greener life — now people are being encouraged to be environmentally friendly when they leave the Earth too.

Cardboard coffins, shell-shaped urns and fireworks that can be packed with people’s ashes were met by smiles at the Natural Death Center’s Green Funeral Exhibition Saturday in London.

Click here for full article in the International Herald Tribune.

and Shirts of Bamboo is featured as number four in their list!

Check out the whole list by clicking here.

Thanks once again.

BTW, the washcloths you gave us were a great way to expose your products.  Most folks were absolutely amazed at how soft they were.  I hope you get some traffic from our event.