POST THREE: IMPACTS OF YOUR PRODUCT
For this post, we will be discussing the origin and transportation of the outsole and leather that comprises my prized Doc Martens boots.
(1) What environmental impacts were associated with the production of your meal or item?
(a) Determine and describe, in as much detail as you can, where at least two ingredients of your meal OR components of your consumer item were produced.
My model of boots are produced from a specific leather called "Crazy Horse" leather. It is most often made from cowhide and garners its unique pre-aged style by being more thoroughly (as compared to other leathers) processed using various oils and waxes. For the Doc Martens company, leather sourcing and footwear assembly are partitioned into two tiers - Tier 1 manufacturers assemble the product, while Tier 2 partners source and refine various ingredients of the boots, including leather and outsole material. Tanneries are an example of a Tier 2 location.
Looking at the tag on the tongue of my specific pair of boots, we will see that they were manufactured in Vietnam. Most Tier 2 manufacturers are located across Asia, Europe, and South America, though more specific information is available for the Tier 1 locations. Five of the Tier 1 locations are in Vietnam, but only one acts as both a Tier 1 and 2 site - Branch of Vietnam Goodfaith Invest and Development Company Limited, located in Thanh Ba. Both major components of the boots - leather and outsole - are made here.
The small red dot is Thanh Ba in Northern Vietnam.
(b) How did your product affect resources like water (groundwater or surface water – did its production deplete or pollute them?), soil, and ecosystems (for instance, did its production reduce biodiversity or habitat)?
Let's reference this scholarly article about the expanding leather/footwear industry in Vietnam.
The article points out that waste caused by leather production negatively affects three major environmental concerns - soil, air, and river water. Furthermore, existing regulations are not very effective in actually stopping these effects. Water is both depleted and polluted by leather-treating chemicals (most notably chromium). Plus, due to being co-produced in some areas alongside beef, air can also be polluted by emitting CO2. And, not to belabor the point, but the space required for tanning and agriculture have contributed to deforestation not just in Vietnam but around the world.
(c) Were chemicals or fossil fuels used to produce your meal or item? Which ones? If so, what environmental effects did they have?
Besides the chemicals involved in leather tanning, fossil fuels are involved in the production of Doc Martens outsoles, most of which are made of PVC. In fact, most plastics are made using fossil fuels, but PVC additionally involves chlorine gas (very toxic) in its production.
(d) How, if at all, did the production of your meal or item contribute to carbon dioxide emissions—and thus potentially to climate change? How, if at all, did it affect air quality?
Both leather (by way of agriculture) and PVC production lend to climate change in their own ways. Again, cattle farming causes deforestation, and PVC fabrication also emits CO2.
(e) In what ways are these impacts “local”? Do some places bear more of the environmental impacts of your meal than others? In what ways are they “global”?
In Vietnam, local waterways are polluted from nearby manufacturers, many of which are located in cities and subdivisions, endangering the health of residents and employees who live in the communities. In other places, leather production has depleted forested land and also contributed handily to climate change, which is of course an issue that affects all people everywhere.
(2) What environmental impacts were associated with the transportation, distribution, and consumption of the ingredients or materials you’ve chosen? Describe the environmental impacts associated with the distribution and transportation of these ingredients or materials, by answering the following questions:
(a) How did the meal or product get to you? Did it reach you by airplane? By truck? By wheelbarrow? Did you buy it at a supermarket? A farmer’s market? A restaurant? A corner store? A “big box” store? Etc.
I bought my boots at a Journeys (like, pre-teen clothing central) at a mall in Milwaukee. After being sourced and assembled in Vietnam, they were shipped (yes, as in cargo ships) to their distribution center, which I discovered is located in Los Angeles. From there, they are likely transported by truck to the brand outlet stores as well as clothing stores (like Journeys) that they have agreed to sell their product at.
(b) Which ingredient or part of your product traveled the furthest to get to you? Which ingredients or components, if any, would you consider “local,” and why?
Doc Martens are not an American product, and they never really have been. Part of the historical legacy of the brand (a part that definitely influences their popularity and brand image today) is their prominent use by the UK punk scene in the 1970s and 80s. They have always been associated with, well, not America, so the notion that my boots came from Vietnam does not bother me, moreso the impacts of that notion.
(c) What kind of waste did your meal or item produce? (Consider packaging, food waste, etc.) Where will this waste go, and what will its environmental impacts include?
On the retail end of the product, so besides the packing materials involved with shipping, Doc Martens come in a bulky cardboard box bigger than typical shoeboxes. But I guess it's not a "waste" insofar as I don't think I've thrown the box out yet...
To conclude, tracing my product has revealed a lot concerning leather production. Leather is advertised as a product that is long-lasting and thus does not necessitate frequent replacements. Which is true - so, why do we really need an industry for a product that most people will only have to purchase one or two of in their lifetimes? I think that is the heart of the matter. If we slow down the production to suit what people actually need, we slow down the processes that are harming our planet.
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