Groundwater conservation, and recycling and reuse of textile wastewater in a denim industry of Bangladesh

Abstract

Bangladesh holds the 2nd position after China in the global apparel market in terms of denim export. In the textile industry clusters of Bangladesh, the groundwater level is depleting at an alarming rate due to overconsumption and mismanagement. The present study evaluates the groundwater conservation potential of a denim facility in Manikganj District through an effluent recycling and reuse approach. In this study, 100% treated wastewater and 10% treated wastewater mixed with softwater were utilized in the wet processing plant to dye and wash sample denim products and investigated for their fabric quality using seven parameters. The test results followed the requirements given by the North American and European fashion brands that source denim products from Bangladesh. The feasibility assessment of groundwater conservation through its high (100%) and low (10%) recycling rates indicated that the studied facility can potentially save around 619,230 m3 and 61,923 m3 of groundwater in a year, respectively.