Life-cycle assessment of denim

The textile industry has one of the largest environmental impacts in the world. Owing to ecological concerns, it is necessary to find ways to reduce these environmental impacts. This is true of denim because it is made of cotton, which in most cases is a polluting crop dyed with indigo, a dye with a damaging degree of fixation which initiates huge ecological problems. Life-cycle assessments provide data from every stage of a product's life, from the cradle to the grave (i.e., from raw material extraction through cultivation, manufacturing, distribution, use, repair and maintenance, and disposal or recycling). These data can be considered one of the first ways to reduce environmental impacts. Therefore, it is important to know the life-cycle assessment of denim and how it affects the ecosystem. This chapter provides some ideas about the life-cycle assessment and its importance, the life cycle of denim, the life-cycle assessment tool, phases of the life-cycle assessment and a life-cycle assessment of denim with actual data.