ABSTRACT
The textile industry is a diverse industry, not only in terms of the
final product range, but also in terms of raw materials, processes,
products, and equipment, and additionally addresses an extremely
complex supply chain. This industry, which caters to one of the basic
needs of mankind, has far-reaching environmental impacts, not only
in terms of the discharge to the environment and surroundings, but
also in terms of depletion of natural resources due to the consumption
of large amounts of water and energy. These impacts have been
realized for the last few decades, and various stringent regulations
have been implemented by legal entities and also through the efforts
of organizations like Greenpeace International, whose investigation
into the apparels of famous brands identifying the presence of
harmful chemicals has shocked the global consumer. The awareness
created by Greenpeace International forced brands to review their
supply chains and work toward ZDHC by 2020. This chapter will
deal in detail with conventional textile processes, characteristics of
textile effluents, conventional effluent treatment, new technologies
for ET, new challenges and norms for textile effluents, ZLD/ZDHC,
and the future of textile effluent treatment.
