The journey towards sustainable consumption & production (SCP) in the Myanmar apparel industry has only just begun, and the road ahead will be long.
As of mid-2019, at least six garment factories in Myanmar have installed solar photovoltaic systems for combined peak generation capacity of approx. 500 kW. Five other garment factories are known to have implemented rainwater harvesting systems. A handful of factories have installed biomass boilers.
One of the facilities taking some of these measures – Amava Apparel – is on track to become the first LEED Platinum manufacturing facility in Myanmar. These positive & best practice actions give hope, but actions taken by only the most progressive 1% of manufacturers are not enough.
The most negative & proximate impacts garment factories in Myanmar have on the environment are:
- Air pollution from boilers
- Water over-extraction
- Water pollution
- Solid & hazardous waste disposal issues
- Contribution to deforestation due to wood fuel use in boilers
