The Atacama Desert has (sadly) become a textile dump

(Re)VogueLatin America has a (serious) problem with used or second-hand clothes that it receives from more developed countries and that it should solve now.

By Pia King

I never thought I would find the news of the Atacama desert turned into a large open-air textile dump, but it was. The images, which are quite impressive, reveal a discouraging panorama where mountains and mountains of clothing discarded in the open try to blend in with the landscape of the region. Yes, we know that textile waste is one of the costs of fast fashion, but it is also a reflection of a larger problem that Latin America suffers: that of being a receptacle for used or second-hand clothing that other countries no longer need. .

By Pia King

The sky in the Atacama desert is one of the biggest I have ever seen. I still remember the feeling I had when I arrived at that magnificent and enigmatic place, that of feeling as small as an ant before the vast immensity of its horizon. There the mystery of the universe and the stars coexist with an orange landscape that seems to have no end. It was only when I entered the desert that I took on a real dimension of our place in the world, that we are part of a whole, of the same planet that we inhabit together. The news of the textile dump in the Atacama desert took me by surprise but, in the same way, it planted in me the question of how it didn't come to light before? Finding out what was happening led me, once again, to come into contact with the magnitude of the problem we have with the overproduction of clothing, and especially with the problem that the used or second-hand clothing market means for Latin Americans, discarded by most powerful and industrialized countries.

When we talk about sustainability and circular models in fashion, the reuse of clothing through vintage or second-hand garments has gained great value. However, the used clothing industry in our region has become a problem, which arose before fast-fashion took the speed it had. In Latin America, this model where textile discards are received from other countries is an issue that has been rooted for years, especially where the textile industry has been weakened and where there are no public policies that seek to promote it. Thus, the bundles or bundles of used clothing travel through the region looking for someone who will accept them, buy them and find a new use and home for that clothing.

What is happening in the Atacama desert?

One of the most attractive deserts in South America has been converted into an open-air textile dump. And the evidence bears it out. The AFP news agency recently revealed Martin Bernetti's photographs showing mountains of discarded and abandoned clothing in a free zone, free of jurisdiction in northern Chile. These images show that at least 39,000 tons of clothing were discarded in that area, causing a huge environmental imbalance. The main problem that this clothing implies is that it is made mainly of synthetic fibers and has chemical components that make it highly polluting for the environment. In addition to not being biodegradable, they will take thousands of years to decompose, as they are made of plastic fibers.

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Chile is known for being a country that made second-hand clothing an industry in itself, with clothing coming mainly from the United States. Alex Carreno, a former employee of the import area of ​​the port of Iquique, in Chile, acknowledged that 'these clothes come from all over the world. What is not sold in Santiago or sent to other countries stays in the free zone'. Around 59,000 tons of clothing enter through that port a year, of which 39,000 are taken to landfills in the desert. These practices are at least 30 years old in that country, and have been the engine of various sustainable designers in the country, with the 12-NA as the main referents of that movement.

What are the consequences of second-hand clothing in Latin America?

The bales or bales of used clothing that enter different Latin American countries as a result of fast-fashion do not only tell us about the over-production and excessive consumption of garments, but they are also social indicators. Paca was opened, the documentary created by Fashion Revolution Guatemala refers to the impact that the bales of used clothing that arrive in the country have on the local textile industry. The demand for locally made clothing decreases with the income of these garments, and the work of artisans begins to lose value, which leads to the ancestral knowledge of the region being lost over the years.

In Bolivia, the used clothing industry has also developed. Juan Carlos Pereira, director of the sustainable firm Juan de la Paz, acknowledges that 'used clothing is the largest source of clothing supply here. The largest open-air used clothing fair in the world is here, so it is very difficult for the fashion industry to develop here. There are a lot of clothes, very good and very cheap'.

By Pia King

It is definitely a complex problem that has multiple edges. While researching this topic, she couldn't help but think about the best way to approach it. Undoubtedly, thinking of vintage or second-hand garments from a circular perspective is a good alternative, but it can also become a structural problem, where legislation must be present, to preserve our natural spaces, those wonders that surround us. So that Atacama remains what it is, that desert where the earth brings us closer to the stars and to the entire universe.