Polyester-Elastane Leggings
200g pair, 82% polyester / 18% elastane
Elastane blends are the hardest textiles to recycle: no commercial process separates the stretch fibre from the polyester. Sportswear also sheds more microfibre per wash than any other garment type.
Material breakdown
2 components- Polyester fibre164g
- Elastane (spandex)36g
Production footprint
Per unitEstimated upstream manufacturing footprint per unit, based on resin LCA averages.
Lower-impact alternatives
- Merino or organic cotton leggingsNatural fibre, biodegradable, no elastane lock-in.0gplastic
- Recycled-polyester leggingsView product →Cuts virgin resin but still sheds; wash cold in a filter bag.200gplastic
- Repair and keep for 5+ yearsDoubling garment life roughly halves its annual footprint.0gplastic
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References for this item
Peer-reviewed studies and institutional reports behind the figures above.
- Analysis of the polyester clothing value chain to identify key intervention points for sustainability ↗Palacios-Mateo, C., van der Meer, Y. & Seide, G. (2021) · Environmental Sciences Europe, 33(1), 2
Cradle-to-grave analysis of polyester garments: fibre production energy, dyeing and finishing impacts, and end-of-life fate. Primary basis for our polyester weights and energy figures.
- The contribution of washing processes of synthetic clothes to microplastic pollution ↗De Falco, F., Di Pace, E., Cocca, M. & Avella, M. (2019) · Scientific Reports, 9, 6633
Measures microfibre release per wash for polyester, polypropylene and polyamide garments — the basis for our shedding notes.
- Environmental impact of textile reuse and recycling – A review ↗Sandin, G. & Peters, G. M. (2018) · Journal of Cleaner Production, 184, 353–365
Reviews 41 studies on textile reuse and recycling; shows reuse consistently beats recycling, and blended fabrics are rarely recycled fibre-to-fibre. Backs our low recycling odds for blends.