A satellite image of a mound of garments in Chile's Atacama Desert was shared widely on the web earlier this year.
Its prominence from space raising the issue of wastefulness in the fashion industry has sparked debate on how to tackle the problem.
Organic fibres such as cotton and wool will break down naturally over time, however the majority of synthetic materials like polyester and nylon will not disintegrate. These materials will linger in garbage dumps for decades, or even centuries.
Though situated in the US, an organisation of scientists continues to explore different possibilities in order to discover an effective natural technique of rapidly decomposing waste polyester and nylon.
Beth Rattner, executive director of the Biomimicry Institute based in Montana, said they are investigating how to deconstruct complex materials while also eliminating any toxic effects from dyes and coatings. This can be done by taking advantage of biological substances such as enzymes or bacteria to create new materials.
She stresses that the objective is to "transform the massive amounts of clothing waste into something biodegradable".
The Biomimicry Institute plans to select its tech partners this year for its Design for Decomposition project, which is projected to produce results in 2024.
Ms Rattner expresses that the strategies that are being researched may not only break down existing fabrics in more eco-friendly methods, but could also lay the groundwork for fresh, inventive materials in the future.
Rather than using dyes, you could use the inherent structure of the fibre to achieve the desired outcome. Similarly, for water repellency, instead of coating the fibre, you could use the fibre itself. Additionally, this same principle could be applied to make wrinkle-free fabrics.
The phrase "fast fashion" has become synonymous with the excessive buying of low-cost garments, despite having begun as a description of the brief amount of time it took for clothes to transition from the design stage to store shelves.
It has been reported by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, campaigning for increased recycling in the UK, that a rubbish truck's worth of clothing is being discarded every second, with only 1% of materials recycled for use in new apparel.
In the words of Jules Lennon, head of the fashion program, "the existing fashion system is malfunctioning."
"Even greater amounts of clothing are being produced than in past years and yet they are getting used less," she remarks. "The fashion industry is the source of more yearly greenhouse gas discharges than all international air transportation and maritime navigation combined."
It is likewise a major factor in the decline of biodiversity that results from soil deterioration and water contamination caused by obtaining of raw materials and intensive washing and dyeing techniques.
Jean Hegedus, who leads the sustainability program at Lycra, is conscious of the difficulties associated with creating the brand's stretching spandex fabric.
It is assumed that somewhere between eight and 10% of global carbon emissions originate from the textile and apparel business, she informs the BBC, thereby demonstrating how reformative changes must be made.
For the US-based Lycra, a natural alternative to polyester needs to be discovered. Polyester and nylon are both manufactured from petroleum.
Ms Hegedus states that if one component, comprising 70% of the total fibre, could be altered from a petroleum-based fibre to a renewable one, it would decrease the company's carbon footprint by 44%.
Lycra began its search for a novel raw ingredient in Iowa, where Qore was teaming up with farmers to fashion a fabric called Qira from sweetcorn.
Ms. Hegedus noted the fascinating core product they produce is "industrial dead corn". This type of corn is not meant for human consumption; instead, it is used to make materials, paper or for animal feed.
Lycra is constructing a large manufacturing plant in Iowa powered by wind energy to manufacture its material using Qira instead of polyester, and this is scheduled to initiate operations by next year. Lycra is aiming to source 70% of its fiber content from the newly introduced corn-based fiber.
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Ms Hegedus reports that, due to a switch in material, the production cost will increase by 10%, and this cost will be shared between the company and its clothing firm customers. She states that the majority of customers have been "very positive" about it.
Lycra states that its utilization of Qira has no damaging affect on the performance or coziness of its items. However, the initial edition of the corn-based Lycra is not able to be recycled, but the company states it is "working on" that issue.
There is an increasing trend in the industry of making garments using materials that are not traditionally used for textile manufacturing.
US company, MycoWorks, is set to begin production of its mushroom-based leather alternative, Reishi, in a South Carolina plant by years' end. The facility will have the capacity to manufacture millions of square feet annually.
Meanwhile, UK-based Faber Futures is looking into employing streptomyces coelicolor, a bacteria which thrives in the soil, to potentially revolutionize the textile dyeing process. It has the capacity to generate a vast array of pigments in its regular life cycle ranging from bold blues and reds to delicate yellows.
Spinnova, a company based in Finland, is able to convert wood pulp into material that can be used for clothing fabrication. By breaking down the pulp into miniscule fibres, they are able to create a yarn that resembles cotton.
Its customers, H&M and Adidas, formed the impetus for the opening of a factory in Jyvaskyla, situated in western Finland, earlier in the year. The goal is to produce one million tons of fibre a year by 2033. The operation is carbon-neutral and the only by-product is heat which is redirected into the area's heating system.
Spinnova's fibres are capable of recycling and spinning anew; however, interim CEO Ben Selby concedes that such a "closed-loop system" will only function properly if brands and shoppers shift their own outlook.
He suggests that the entire sector should begin to improve its efforts in retrieving used apparel that can be recycled.
Despite the opportunity to recycle, numerous fashion retailers' "takeback" schemes have been found to not have a positive environmental impact. A report this year, which followed 21 returned items from 10 fashion brands, discovered that three-quarters of them were either destroyed, left in warehouses, or shipped to Africa, leading to the creation of new mountains of apparel.
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