Water stewardship has emerged as a critical priority for the global textile industry as water scarcity, climate change, pollution, and increasing competition for freshwater resources create growing environmental and business challenges. It goes beyond traditional water management by promoting the responsible and sustainable use of water resources through collaboration among businesses, governments, communities, and other stakeholders.
The textile sector is one of the most water-intensive industries, requiring substantial water resources throughout the value chain, from raw material cultivation to manufacturing processes, particularly dyeing, washing, printing, and finishing. Globally, the textile industry consumes an estimated 215 trillion litres of water annually, putting significant pressure on aquatic ecosystems. These challenges are intensifying due to increasing water scarcity, climate change, rising freshwater demand, and evolving environmental regulations and sustainability expectations.
In response, textile manufacturers are adopting water-efficient technologies, cleaner production practices, wastewater treatment and reuse systems, and collaborative water stewardship approaches.
Global Textile Manufacturing: From Water Challenge to Water Stewardship
The apparel sector is a cornerstone of manufacturing economies such as Bangladesh, India, China, Vietnam, and Turkey, contributing significantly to exports and employment. According to WTO data, global apparel exports reached US$557.5 billion in 2024, with Bangladesh maintaining its position as the world’s second-largest apparel exporter. Bangladesh has also outlined an ambitious roadmap to achieve US$100 billion in apparel exports by 2030 while strengthening its commitment to sustainability.
Water is becoming one of the biggest sustainability challenges facing the global fashion and apparel industry. Textile manufacturing is highly water-intensive, particularly during wet-processing activities such as dyeing, bleaching, printing, washing, and finishing. These processes consume substantial volumes of freshwater and generate wastewater that can pollute rivers, degrade ecosystems, and create risks for surrounding communities if it is not properly managed.
In Bangladesh, the textile wet-processing industry consumes around 1,500 billion litres of water annually to process approximately five million tonnes of fabric, equivalent to around 300 litres per kilogram of fabric, according to estimates cited from the International Finance Corporation’s Partnership for Cleaner Textile (PaCT). Research conducted across textile factories in Bangladesh has also found considerable variation in specific water consumption, ranging from 28 litres per kilogram for denim dyeing to 285 litres per kilogram in a knit composite factory.
This variation highlights the importance of improving process efficiency and understanding where water is being consumed.
Current patterns of water consumption and wastewater generation expose manufacturers to increasing environmental, regulatory, financial, and reputational risks. Stricter environmental regulations, tighter wastewater discharge standards, rising buyer expectations, the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct, emerging EU sustainability and due diligence requirements, and industry initiatives such as the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) Standard and the ZDHC Programme are making water stewardship increasingly important for textile businesses.
Embedding water stewardship into business operations can help textile manufacturers strengthen compliance, improve ESG performance, safeguard corporate reputation, and build resilient, future-ready businesses.
Global Best Practices and Country Experiences
Across the world, textile-producing countries are increasingly adopting water stewardship practices to improve water efficiency, reduce environmental impacts, and build more resilient and sustainable industries.
China has invested in smart water management, digital monitoring, wastewater recycling, and stronger environmental regulations. India, particularly the Tiruppur textile cluster, has developed extensive experience with Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) systems, enabling significant wastewater recycling and reducing water pollution. Vietnam has strengthened wastewater treatment and cleaner production through partnerships among government agencies, industry, and development organizations. Pakistan and Turkey are also expanding the use of water-efficient technologies, wastewater recycling, and responsible chemical management.
Bangladesh has made significant progress through investments in water-efficient technologies, advanced effluent treatment plants (ETPs), rainwater harvesting systems, and green factory initiatives, particularly among LEED-certified facilities. Programmes such as PaCT have also supported resource-efficiency improvements across textile factories.
These experiences demonstrate that technological innovation, effective regulation, and collaboration are essential for building a resilient, competitive, and sustainable textile industry.
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Business Case for Water Stewardship
Water stewardship has evolved into a strategic business priority, enabling manufacturers to reduce resource consumption, improve efficiency, and strengthen resilience against water-related risks. Water efficiency in dyeing and other wet-processing operations can reduce freshwater demand, while effective wastewater treatment, recycling, and reuse can reduce dependence on freshwater resources and support regulatory compliance.
For Bangladesh’s RMG sector, investment in cleaner production, digital monitoring, wastewater management, and water-efficiency targets can enhance ESG performance, support access to sustainable finance, meet the expectations of international buyers, and strengthen competitiveness.
Water stewardship therefore represents more than an environmental responsibility. It can also contribute to operational efficiency, risk management, market access, and long-term business resilience.
Solutions for Sustainable Water Stewardship
Achieving sustainable water stewardship requires a holistic approach combining technological innovation, effective governance, resource efficiency, and collaboration across the textile value chain.
Manufacturers should begin by assessing water use, identifying water-related risks, conducting water accounting and footprint assessments, and establishing measurable water-efficiency targets. Investments in efficient dyeing practices, cleaner production methods, low-liquor-ratio dyeing, sustainable alternatives such as foam dyeing and micelle technology, advanced ETPs, and water-saving equipment can help reduce freshwater consumption and pollution.
Expanding water recycling, reuse, wastewater recovery, and ZLD systems can further support resource optimization and circular water management. However, technology choices should be based on local water conditions, process requirements, environmental performance, energy use, and economic feasibility rather than treating any single technology as a universal solution.
Improving chemical management, leak detection, groundwater management, and energy-efficient systems can further strengthen operational performance. Digital solutions such as smart sensors, real-time monitoring, data analytics, and artificial intelligence can improve visibility, identify inefficiencies, and support informed decision-making.
Manufacturers should also consider nature-based solutions, including rainwater harvesting, aquifer recharge, and watershed restoration, to enhance long-term water security. Strengthening water governance through catchment collaboration, transparent reporting, responsible business practices, and continuous improvement can further enhance ESG performance and reduce water-related risks.
Path Forward: Building a Water-Resilient Textile Industry
Despite growing awareness and encouraging progress, the adoption of comprehensive water stewardship remains uneven across the global textile industry. While many leading manufacturers have invested in advanced technologies and recognized water-management frameworks, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) continue to face financial, technological, and institutional barriers.
Building a water-resilient textile industry requires coordinated action by manufacturers, brands, governments, financial institutions, and local communities. Key priorities include:
- Embed Water Stewardship into Business Strategy: Integrate water-related risks, opportunities, and performance into business strategy, corporate governance, and sustainability planning.
- Adopt Sustainable Manufacturing Practices: Implement cleaner production practices that reduce water consumption, optimize chemical use, and minimize wastewater generation while improving resource efficiency and operational performance.
- Diversify Water Sources: Reduce reliance on freshwater and groundwater by investing in rainwater harvesting, treated wastewater reuse, and other appropriate alternative water sources.
- Strengthen Water Data, Governance, and Transparency: Develop integrated water-management systems supported by reliable data, digital monitoring, and regular performance assessments. Transparent reporting on water withdrawal, consumption, discharge, treatment, and reuse strengthens accountability and informed decision-making.
- Protect Watersheds and Recharge Aquifers: Invest in watershed restoration, groundwater recharge, and nature-based solutions to safeguard shared water resources and strengthen ecosystem resilience.
- Strengthen Stakeholder Collaboration: Foster collaboration among manufacturers, brands, suppliers, governments, industry associations, financial institutions, and local communities to address shared water challenges and promote sustainable watershed management.
- Promote Collective Industry Action: Participate in industry-wide initiatives to reduce water pollution, share best practices, improve water quality, and accelerate progress toward sustainable water stewardship.
- Strengthen Policy Support and Green Finance: Governments and financial institutions should expand policy incentives, technical assistance, and access to green finance, particularly for SMEs, to accelerate investment in sustainable water technologies and infrastructure.
By combining technological innovation, responsible governance, supportive policies, and collaborative action, the textile industry can reduce water-related risks, strengthen supply-chain resilience, safeguard freshwater resources, and enhance its long-term sustainability and global competitiveness.
Water stewardship should no longer be viewed simply as a voluntary environmental initiative. For a global textile industry facing increasing resource, climate, regulatory, and market pressures, it is becoming an essential part of building a resilient, responsible, and competitive future.