PVC Clothing Toxicity: A Global Crisis Hidden in Plain Sight
- Marina Moore
- Jan 23
- 5 min read
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) has long been marketed as a modern, versatile, and even “cruelty‑free” material for fashion. Yet its glossy surface conceals one of the most toxic industrial lifecycles of any plastic in circulation today. From chlorine production to vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) synthesis, from garment manufacturing to disposal, PVC leaves behind a trail of carcinogens, environmental contamination, and regulatory failure. The fashion industry’s embrace of PVC—particularly in faux leather, accessories, footwear, and protective clothing—has entrenched this toxic material in everyday life, even as evidence of its dangers continues to accumulate.
The scale of the problem was thrown into sharp relief on 3 February 2023, when 38 rail cars of a Norfolk Southern freight train derailed and burned in East Palestine, Ohio. Five of the cars contained 887,400 pounds of vinyl chloride, the key building block of PVC. The resulting inferno released hazardous chemicals into the air and soil, triggering one of the most significant environmental health disasters in recent US history. This was not an isolated incident. Chlorine‑based products are made from chlorine gas—the same gas historically used in chemical weapons—and chlorine‑related industrial accidents continue to occur. In September 2024, a fire at the BioLab facility in Rockdale County, USA, sent a chlorine plume high into the air. It was only the latest in a long line of incidents at the Conyers complex, which has experienced major fires in 1973, 2004, 2015, 2016, and 2020 (Vallette 2018).
Despite the well‑documented hazards of vinyl chloride, the substance was only banned for use in aerosols in 1974. It remains legal in other applications, including PVC production. Since the end of the Second World War, PVC has become a dominant global material, with production now exceeding 30 million tonnes per year, much of it destined for furnishings, children’s toys, protective clothing, and artificial leather (Burnham 1974). Chlorine production for PVC alone consumes an estimated 47 billion kilowatt hours annually—equivalent to the output of eight medium‑sized nuclear power plants. The fashion industry plays a significant role in this demand: compounded PVC used for clothing accounts for between 47,000 and 281,000 tonnes per year (ECHA 2023).
PVC’s reputation as an ethical or environmentally friendly alternative to leather collapses under scrutiny. Its entire lifecycle is toxic. Vinyl chloride exposure is associated with liver cancer, immune dysfunction, and acro‑osteolysis. PVC itself contains chlorine and requires plasticisers—often phthalates—to make it flexible. These additives are not chemically bound to the polymer and can leach out over time, entering the air, dust, and human bodies. The European Environmental Bureau and multiple scientific reviews have linked PVC and its additives to cancer, birth defects, endocrine disruption, and long‑term ecological harm (EEB 2024; Thornton 2024).
These dangers have been known for decades. In 1974, Dr Joseph Wagoner of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health testified before the US Senate Commerce Subcommittee on the Environment, presenting epidemiological evidence of elevated cancer rates among vinyl chloride polymerisation workers. Between 1950 and 1973, 109 deaths were observed in this workforce, compared to 105 expected, with cancer deaths 57 percent higher than predicted. The testimony detailed liver damage, angiosarcoma, and other severe health effects, prompting the creation of a NIOSH/CDC surveillance network to track cases (Wagoner 1974). Yet half a century later, PVC remains ubiquitous.
Regulatory responses have been slow and inconsistent. The European Commission acknowledged the serious environmental and human health risks of PVC as early as 2000 (EU COM 2000). More recently, the EU’s Restriction Roadmap (2022) added PVC additives to the list of chemicals requiring tighter control. However, despite the European Chemicals Agency concluding that PVC poses risks not adequately controlled, no ban has been enacted. PVC clearly falls within the scope of the EU’s flagship chemical law, REACH, yet remains exempt from meaningful restriction.
In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency announced in December 2023 that vinyl chloride would be prioritised for risk evaluation under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). By December 2024, it had been designated a high‑priority chemical, triggering a formal risk assessment process. The EPA has emphasised that further public comment and stakeholder engagement will occur as the evaluation proceeds (EPA 2025). Still, the pace of regulatory action remains far slower than the pace of PVC production.
One explanation for this inertia lies in the political economy of the chemical industry. Analysts estimate that over the past decade, chemical industry lobbyists have spent more than €293 million influencing EU policy. In the United States, lobbying expenditures reached $21,260,017 in 2025.
The global PVC supply chain is dominated by a small number of powerful corporations. In the Americas, Olin, Occidental Petroleum, and Westlake Chemical control roughly 70 percent of chlorine‑production capacity. In the United States, Formosa (Taiwan), Shin‑Etsu (Japan), Mexichem (Mexico), and Saint‑Gobain (France) own an estimated 58 percent of PVC production capacity, with Formosa and Shin‑Etsu operating four of the seven largest PVC plants. These companies operate transnationally, shipping chlorine and vinyl chloride monomer across continents for further processing. In Europe, firms such as Mexichem, Shin‑Etsu, Wanhua, and Westlake collectively own more than one‑third of PVC capacity, while major German chlor‑alkali plants—BASF in Ludwigshafen, Evonik in Lülsdorf, and Dow in Stade—continue to produce over a million tonnes of chlorine annually (Vallette 2018).
Meanwhile, waste management systems are unable to cope with the volume of PVC entering the market. PVC is difficult to recycle, contaminated with additives, and prone to releasing dioxins when incinerated. Landfills accumulate PVC waste that can persist for centuries, leaching hazardous chemicals into soil and groundwater. The mismatch between production and disposal capacity ensures that PVC pollution will continue to escalate.
Alternatives exist. Plant‑based materials derived from grapes, mushrooms, apple skins, cactus, pineapple, and straw offer safer options for many applications. Yet these materials remain inaccessible to most consumers due to cost, and the fashion industry continues to prioritise profit over public health and environmental responsibility.
PVC clothing is not merely a fashion choice; it is a manifestation of a global toxic economy. The disasters in East Palestine and Rockdale County are not anomalies but symptoms of a system built on hazardous chemistry, weak regulation, and corporate influence. Until governments confront the political and economic power of the PVC industry, and until fashion brands take responsibility for the materials they promote, PVC will remain one of the most environmentally damaging plastics in circulation—woven into garments, embedded in supply chains, and dispersed into ecosystems worldwide.
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If you would like to read more, Deceit And Denial is an excellent book.
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Alternatives to PVC
Cactus (Desserto) https://desserto.com.mx/
Pineapple leaves (Piñatex), https://www.ananas-anam.com/
Apple peels (AppleSkin), https://www.appleskin.com/
Grapeskin https://www.vegeacompany.com/
Mushroom (Mylo)https://boltthreads.com/technology/mylo/
Coconut https://malai.eco/
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