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Rebecca Spector and Sandra Marquardt

Monday, June 18, 2007

Overuse of chemicals in cotton production; how to avoid exposure to these chemicals and toxins and other options to conventional cotton products.

We put cotton next to our skin because it breathes, absorbs and comforts. Cotton also has a reputation for being pure, the best fabric for a baby's diapers and first t-shirt. However, most cotton goods sold today don't deserve that natural reputation. During cotton production and processing, lots of unnatural and highly hazardous chemicals are used.

Conventional Cotton Creates A Pesticide Wasteland

Cotton is one of the most intensively sprayed field crops in the world – accounting for more than 10 percent of pesticide use and nearly 23 percent of agricultural insecticide sales worldwide. According to the Pesticide Action Network, it takes about one-fourth of a pound of chemicals just to make one cotton t-shirt, and two-thirds of a pound to make a pair of jeans.

"The pesticides used on cotton, whether in the U.S. or oversees, are some of the most hazardous available today," says Doug Murray, Ph.D., a professor of sociology at Colorado State University who has studied pesticide use on cotton overseas.

"Any shift toward more sustainable production methods can only be a major boon to farmers and farm workers around the world," he says. Cotton is grown in more than 50 developing countries. The leading producers are the U.S., China, India, Pakistan and Uzbekistan.

The effects of this overuse of chemicals on the environment and human health are alarming. For example, pesticide and fertilizer use on cotton has been linked to ground and surface water contamination, and even the pollution of drinking water. And at high enough levels in drinking water that is not tested (such as that from private wells), nitrates from nitrogen fertilizer are known to cause methemoglobinemia, or "blue baby syndrome," that can cause death in infants. Volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions from cotton pesticides exceed eleven million pounds in California, making conventional cotton the highest crop contributor to VOC emissions in the state. And in California, cotton ranks third in the state for total number of pesticide-related illness.

For wildlife, the effects of pesticide use on cotton can be devastating. At least 13 pesticides documented as causing die-offs in migratory birds are currently registered for use on cotton. More insidious is the effect of some pesticides on the reproductive capacity of fish and wildlife – harm may not occur right away, but species disappear as they cannot reproduce successfully.

"We're living in a totally toxic community," notes Will Allen, farmer and executive director of the Sustainable Cotton Project (SCP ), who lives in California's Sacramento Valley. Farmers and residents living nearby cotton fields are exposed to pesticide drift on a continual basis throughout the cotton season.

The bleaches and dyes used on cotton also have their costs. See Fabric Bleaching and Dyes for more information.

Organic Cotton: The Whole-Lifecycle Solution

Fortunately, more and more farmers are growing without toxic chemicals. According to the Organic Trade Association (OTA), in 1990, only about 900 acres of organic cotton were grown in the entire U.S. In 2005, that figure had grown to roughly 6,577 acres.

"These organic farmers are leading the way to developing what is truly a natural product. Given the problems of worker health, pest resistance and increasing costs of using pesticides, it's only a matter of time before conventional cotton growers change as well," according to Will Allen of SCP.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has finalized certification standards for "organically grown," under the National Organic Program which covers how organic cotton is grown. The OTA is developing industry guidelines specifically to address processing organic cotton into clothing and other non-food uses.

Instead of pesticides, organic farmers employ such biological controls as beneficial insects. They also rotate crops to alleviate soil-borne pathogens, and weed by machine or hand. Compost and cover crops are used to improve soil health and fertility, which makes crops less vulnerable to insects and disease.

Investing in a Cleaner Environment

Some companies, and consumers, have balked at the higher cost of organically grown products. Much of the difference in price comes not from the price per pound of cotton, but from the far smaller economic scale (which demands higher processing costs by mills) on which organic cotton, fabric and yarn are produced.

The good news is that a few companies are using organic cotton without passing the additional cost on to the consumer. Some companies are choosing to blend their cotton products with both organic and conventionally grown cotton.

For example, since 1997, Nike has been using organic cotton in apparel and headwear. Their best estimates for 2003 show that more than 2.5 percent of the cotton they used globally was organic, representing approximately 3,000,000 pounds of organic cotton fiber; this figure makes Nike the largest retail user of organic cotton in the world (according to the Organic Exchange [http://www.organicexchange.org/]). Thei goal is to blend a minimum of 5 percent organic cotton into all of their cotton-containing materials by 2010, while steadily expanding their offering of 100 percent certified organic cotton products.

Other companies, such as Patagonia, are using 100 percent organic cotton and see this change as a long-term commitment.

Yvon Chouinard says of Patagonia's switch to organic, "Given what we now know about conventional cotton, there is no going back on this decision. We are betting that we have enough loyal customers who will make the same choice we have made here at Patagonia: to pay more now for organics rather than the hidden, whopping environmental costs later."

"We really have to take a whole lifecycle approach to what we buy, thinking about not only the finished product, but also the farming and processing systems used to create it," says Lynda Grose, a San Francisco-based designer and co-founder of Esprit's former ecollection. When we buy organic cotton, we help build a growing industry while reducing environmental pollution and adverse health effects to farmworkers.

What You Can Do

Ask every clothing store where you shop to offer organically grown cotton products. Reach for organic cotton goods and wear them with comfort and peace of mind. You can also take action and write to your favorite clothing company and tell them you want them to use organic cotton, even if in small amounts. Organic cotton blended with conventional cotton still increases organic cotton production and reduces pesticide releases into our environment.

Resources

The Sustainable Cotton Project works with cotton growers and corporations to help them convert to organic cotton.

Pesticide Action Network of North America (PANNA) researches information on pesticide use and is also launching an organic cotton t-shirt campaign.

International Organic Cotton Directory: Online directory from PAN and Organic Trade Association providing information about farmers, companies and organizations around the world producing and supporting organic cotton.