Product
Reference
1. Raw Material
Water footprint per kg cotton (L/kg)
Formula
Water consumption (liters) = Fabric weight (kg) × Water footprint per fabric (liters/kg)
Organic cotton standard
7,000 – 9,000 L/kg
Conventional cotton standard
10,000 – 15,000 L/kg
Carbon emissions calculation
Formula
CO₂ emissions (kg) = Fabric weight (kg) × Emission factor (kg CO₂/kg)
Average emission factor for organic cotton
approx. 1.8 kg CO₂/kg (range: 1.5–2.5)
2. Yarn / Spinning
Formula
CO₂ emissions (kg) = Yarn weight (kg) × Spinning emission factor (kg CO₂/kg)
Based on India’s power mix
0.5 – 0.7 kg CO₂/kg
3. Fabric / Knitting
Formula
CO₂ emissions (kg) = Fabric weight (kg) × Knitting emission factor (kg CO₂/kg)
Circular knitting emission factor
approx. 0.3 kg CO₂/kg
4. Natural Dyeing
Formula
CO₂ emissions (kg) = Fabric weight (kg) × Dyeing emission factor (kg CO₂/kg)
Manual dyeing standard
0.1–0.2 kg CO₂/kg
Water Consumption
Formula
Water consumption (liters) = Fabric weight (kg) × Water footprint of dyeing process (liters/kg)
Hand dyeing standard
In this project, water is reused, so it approaches zero.
Reference
Fraunhofer UMSICHT. (2018). Environmental assessment of natural dyes and dyeing techniques. Higg Index (2023). Dyeing and finishing module.
5. Transportation
Transport information
India → Korea
Formula
CO₂ emissions (kg) = Product weight (kg) × Transportation emission factor (kg CO₂/kg)
Sea freight standard
1.1 – 1.4 kg CO₂/kg
Air freight standard
Air freight can be more than 5 times higher.
6. Sewing and Assembly
Formula
CO₂ emissions (kg) = Product weight (kg) × Sewing emission factor (kg CO₂/kg)
Domestic small scale sewing based on electricity
0.1 – 0.2 kg CO₂/kg
Reference
Higg MSI / OpenLCA Data set, Electricity standards for Korean manufacturing
7. Component (Label, NFC etc.)
Formula
CO₂ emissions (kg) = Estimated component emissions (kg CO₂)
Biodegradable label (1.5g)
<0.01 kg CO₂
NFC tag (PET, aluminum, silicone)
0.05 – 0.07 kg CO₂
Reference
Fraunhofer ICT. (2019). LCA of smart tags and digital components.