Depletion of Groundwater Level by Textile and RMG Industry
Shahriar Hossain Himel
9th Batch, SARSTEC
SARSTEC Science and Research Club-SSRC
Textile and ready-made garment (RMG) industry plays a significant role in the economy of Bangladesh. One out of every three t-shirts in Europe comes from Bangladesh. Even if only denim is taken, 1 out of 4. Bangladesh is the source of one out of every 5 denim in the USA. According to Eurostat, the dominance of Bangladeshi clothing, which is second only to China, is increasing in the European market. In the meantime, textile and ready-made garment (RMG) industry can contribute to the depletion of groundwater level through various wet processes associated with their production.
According to BGMEA, Bangladesh exported 42.61 billion dollars or four and a half lakh crores worth of clothing in 2022. Just as Westerners are happy with cheap clothes, Bangladesh is happy with its prosperous economy, but the price of this happiness has to be paid to the environment, especially the groundwater level. Water in the process of making clothes. A very necessary material, especially in dyeing and washing, the use of water is the most. How is that calculation? Depending on how efficient the factory is, 1 kg of denim may require up to 250 liters of water. On average, 150-200 liters of water are required to process 1 kg of cotton or cotton blend fabric. Accordingly, the garment industry may consume 1500 billion liters of water annually, which is used by 2 crore people in Dhaka. Equal to 5-10 months of used water!! The factory’s huge water supply comes mainly from underground. And the groundwater level is decreasing every year. Analyzing the monthly means of 2011 and 2021, it can be seen that the water level is decreasing at an alarming rate in the areas where there are many dyeing and washing factories such as Savar in Dhaka, Gazipur Sadar, Rupganj and Bhaluka in Mymensingh compared to 2011. The water level has dropped almost twice or more. In 2011, where the water in Gazipur was about 26 meters deep, in 2021, it has to go down to 51 meters to get water. Factories are clearly responsible for the drop in water levels. Analyzing various measures in the four areas, it can be seen that the number of factories in these areas has increased in the last 10-12 years, as well as the production has increased. Among the factories that use water very much, it can be seen that the production of woven fabric has increased four times in these 10 years from 2011-2021. The production of oven dyeing, knit dyeing, yarn dyeing has increased from 30 to 50 percent. That is, on the one hand, the production of these factories is increasing, on the other hand, the water level is falling.
Let us analyze some more methods to make the matter more clear. The minimum water consumption for wool fabric production is 13.3 gallons/pound to the maximum 78.9 gallons/pound.
From a minimum of 0.6 gal/lb to a maximum of 60.9 gal/lb in woven cases, a minimum of 2.4 gal/lb to a maximum of 45.2 gal/lb in knitted cases, a minimum of 0.3 gal/lb in non-woven cases, to a maximum of 9.9 gal/lb. Think for a moment that we are using much needed water just to make clothes which we throw away after a few days of use and are eager to buy new clothes. So what is the solution?
Some new technologies can be mentioned where the water to liquor ratio can be reduced a lot. About 20-30% less water is being consumed through enzymatic treatment. About 20% of water can also be saved through ultrasonic (wet process) treatment. Weight gas treatment can be a good alternative where water is saved on a large scale. 90% less water can be consumed through Color zen cotton pre-treatment technology. Also, no water is required in plasma technology. Ink jet (digital) printing can also reduce water consumption to a large extent. Very little water is consumed in super critical carbon-dioxide dyeing. Foam technology can reduce water absorption up to 80% in the case of finishing. These technologies or other technologies that reduce water absorption and increase production are also possible. But the factories are investing in this way?
Yes there are factories that are investing. Reducing water use in production is a sustainable solution. But walking on this path is not so easy for all the factories. In these fields, some technical changes and upgraded technologies have to be adapted and the industrial owners have to be encouraged to invest in these fields. International researchers also think the problem is in the whole process. From producers to importers and buyers, everyone has to take responsibility. According to them, clothing is a global industry. Therefore, it will not be solved only nationally, we have to agree globally because when the production cost increases with the use of these technologies, the price of clothing can naturally increase.
Foreign buyers will always want to buy cheap products. Then the importers will want to move to other countries. In that case, internal pressure may be created in the country. Therefore, every organization in the country and abroad associated with the whole process must agree on this. The World Bank’s IFC has worked with 400 factories in the country and the efficiency of many has increased. According to them, the consumption of 29.5 billion liters of water per year has decreased but it is very less than the requirement. In this case, increasing the number of our government ETP connected factories can be a solution and monitoring whether it is being used properly in effluent treatment plan (ETP) connected factories is also important. Needless to say, water reuse can greatly reduce the stress on groundwater.
References:
- Deutschvel,
- A Hasanbeigi,
- L Price – Journal of Cleaner Production, 2015 – Elsevier
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- Water Consumption in Textile Processing Industry
- Impact of Water in Textile Wet Processing
- Water Management in Textile Industry – An Overview
- How to Reduce Water Consumption in Textile Industry
Founder & Editor of Textile Learner. He is a Textile Consultant, Blogger & Entrepreneur. Mr. Kiron is working as a textile consultant in several local and international companies. He is also a contributor of Wikipedia.
