Roadmap To Zero

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Sampling & Analysis Plan

Continuous improvement of sampling and testing data

In the spirit of continuous improvement, the ZDHC Wastewater and Sludge Laboratory Sampling and Analysis Plan (SAP) will be reviewed on a regular basis and revised as needed to incorporate learnings and opportunities identified during the practical application and implementation of these procedures.

All ZDHC Accepted Laboratories must refer to both the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines and the SAP when conducting sampling and testing/analysis, as both documents complement one another.

Apply to become a ZDHC Accepted Laboratory here.

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The standard for wastewater and sludge testing

Large quantities of water are often used to manufacture and process apparel, textile and footwear products. At the end of the production line, wastewater gets released. If that's not properly treated, it poses a threat to the environment.

Making wastewater cleaner has generally been a big task for every brand and supplier involved. ZDHC encourages the industry to take a collaborative approach in tackling challenges, as part of a joint ambition to improve the quality of discharged wastewater and sludge.

Together with leading brands, suppliers, academia, testing laboratories, technology providers, and other stakeholders, we created comprehensive, unified ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines. These Guidelines provide a harmonised set of wastewater and sludge parameters, limit values and test methods. They help brands and suppliers work to the same set of expectations.

These are the first guidelines to define pass and fail criteria for hazardous chemicals covered in the ZDHC MRSL. The standards in these Guidelines cover conventional wastewater parameters while also going beyond regulatory compliance.

For suppliers wishing to share the outcome of testing with multiple brands, the ZDHC Gateway – Wastewater Module makes that entire process easier. The Gateway is a global web-based platform for sharing verified data on wastewater and sludge testing.

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Wastewater Guidelines parameters and limits as they refer to leather

Although the current ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines do not apply to leather processing (including beam house, tanning, dyeing, and finishing), some brands and suppliers have adopted them as part of their testing policies. We encourage and support leather wastewater testing to help us to gather data to update the Guidelines to reflect leather specific limits, however, we advise that brands do not compare the following conventional parameters: COD, BOD5, Total-N, and Chromium - total, to the limits given in the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines for leather facilities.

The global platform for sharing wastewater data

Large quantities of water are often used as part of production processes. At the end of the production line, wastewater gets released. If that's not properly treated, it poses a threat to the environment.

Making wastewater cleaner has generally been a big task for every brand, supplier and laboratory involved. Repeated testing, high costs and inefficiencies are just some of the hurdles faced by the industry.

The ZDHC Gateway – Wastewater Module makes the entire process easier and more transparent. It's a global web-based platform for sharing verified data on wastewater and sludge testing.

Wastewater tests are done by ZDHC Accredited Laboratories, in line with ZDHC standards, so results are verified and trustworthy. The results can then be found by all parties at one central place, in the ZDHC Gateway - Wastewater Module. All of this shared information also increases transparency throughout the industry.

How Brands Benefit

To monitor and report on their efforts to provide safer products, brands need visibility on environmental impacts across their entire value chain. They need to feel confident about the validity of wastewater data their suppliers present to them.

This has traditionally been a complicated, data intensive task. Supplier information and test results come from different sources. The format and timing of this data also varies, creating an information overload that's difficult to handle.

The ZDHC Gateway gives brands a place to track and monitor the output performance of different suppliers at the same time, and according to the same standards. That means making a clear comparison is much easier.

The ZDHC Gateway – Wastewater Module provides a solution by helping brands to:

Select suppliers on the Gateway rather than having to research elsewhere
Save labour costs by partnering with registered suppliers
Increase capacity to source sustainably and address wastewater contamination
Quickly and easily provide other stakeholders with reliable, verified data
Obtain insights to inform procurement decisions and further mitigation work
Eliminate the burden of capturing and comparing test data
Strengthen relationships across the value chain
Demonstrate progress and transparency in meeting ZDHC commitments

How Suppliers Benefit

Suppliers (manufacturing facilities) that test their wastewater also face challenges. Providing information to the brands they supply is not always easy. They can be overwhelmed by the administrative burden of answering requests for test results.

Such requests often come in varying formats at different times. Across the entire customer base, this quickly becomes a time-consuming effort.

The ZDHC Gateway - Wastewater Module lets suppliers share secured, verified test results with all customers. All test results are accessible in one place, so it's no longer necessary to repeat the same tests for different customers. Additionally, suppliers get to understand the quality of the wastewater they discharge to the environment through the ClearStream report.

This saves time and resources, and frees suppliers to focus on actually improving the quality of discharged water. The ZDHC Gateway – Wastewater Module helps to:

Reduce the need to respond to individual requests for data
Easily give customers reliable, verified data
Streamline the process of uploading test results
Get clear insights on water inputs and outputs
Enhance the ability to identify hazardous discharge
Increase business opportunities

How Laboratories Benefit

Laboratories that test wastewater discharge can find it an administrative burden to respond to continuous requests for results. The ZDHC Gateway – Wastewater Module helps by providing a place to manage and publish test results via one web-based tool.

Customers can easily review test results and share them with their stakeholders. This enables labs to focus on other priorities, while increasing transparency throughout the industry. The ZDHC Gateway – Wastewater Module helps to:

Eliminate the need to respond to individual requests
Share information rapidly
Enhance customer interactions

ZDHC ClearStream

The globally-accepted wastewater quality report for the industry

Suppliers in the industry find it challenging to interpret and communicate wastewater test results. ZDHC ClearStream is the universally accepted wastewater report that makes things clearer. It makes lab test reports more understandable. That helps suppliers to demonstrate their wastewater performance, according to Wastewater Guidelines, to the brands they serve.

A ZDHC ClearStream report can be generated from any verified, published wastewater test results on the ZDHC Gateway. These results are uploaded to the ZDHC Gateway - Wastewater Module by a growing number of ZDHC Accepted Laboratories worldwide. A ClearStream report is downloadable in pdf format and is accessible directly by the brands on the ZDHC Gateway.

The report shows wastewater performance in the context of the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines. It also provides some guidance on opportunities to improve. ZDHC ClearStream reports highlight:

Wastewater performance in line with the ZDHC methodology
Opportunities for improvement
Detailed results from ZDHC Accepted Laboratory test reports in the context of the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines and scoring methodology

The ZDHC ClearStream report will be digitally signed by ZDHC, proving authenticity and demonstrating transparency with reliable, verified wastewater data.

ClearStream gives suppliers a way to understand and communicate their laboratory’s wastewater test results. By doing so it helps them to position as a leader in striving for environmental protection.

The Public Disclosure Portal

This portal provides a global picture of performance with regard to the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines. In this international supply chain overview, a map highlights where manufacturing facilities meet the requirements of the Wastewater Guidelines, Table 2A-N (MRSL Parameters). Where requirements are not met, it shows if corrective action has been put in place.

There are two types of data within it, verified and unverified.

‍Verified data

This is wastewater testing data that's directly uploaded by ZDHC Accepted Laboratories under the ZDHC wastewater and sludge testing programme.

ZDHC Accepted Laboratories have been reviewed by ZDHC technical staff to ensure they have the technical ability in the appropriate testing analytes. The laboratories quality assurance programme is also reviewed.‍

Unverified data

This is wastewater data provided by third parties. Such wastewater testing may be conducted by any laboratories, where ZDHC has not necessarily reviewed their testing capability or quality assurance programme.

What kind of wastewater test data is disclosed?‍

Anonymised, aggregated, colour coded wastewater testing data per facility pertaining to ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines Table 2A-N (MRSL Parameters).

An important element of the value chain

Fibres are an important part of the value chain. Therefore it’s a logical next step for ZDHC Roadmap to Zero Programme to include fibre production processes and their raw materials. In 2018, the scope of the Programme extended to include the production of Man-Made Cellulosic Fibres (MMCF). This is the first fibre production area included in the Programme. More materials will be added in the future.

Global viscose production is growing fast, which is why the initial focus is on Man-Made Cellulosic Fibres (MMCF; including viscose, modal and lyocell). MMCFs are produced from natural feedstock like wood or plants, using hazardous chemicals. Within the production process of viscose and modal, particularly where that’s not an integrated (closed loop) process, chemicals react with the cellulose. This creates by-products, which can be released into the air, water and soil, so we’ve been working to tackle the issue.

An 2018 industry expert report commissioned by ZDHC concluded that restricting chemicals via the ZDHC MRSL approach would not work. The restrictions would halt most MMCF production processes. We would achieve most impact by collaboratively setting guidance around good chemical management and limits for wastewater, sludge, and air emissions during fibre production. At the same time ZDHC can continue researching MMCF production processes using less hazardous chemicals.

In March 2018, ZDHC hosted the first multi-stakeholder MMCF roundtable with representatives from approximately 80% of the global MMCF production. Several ZDHC Signatory Brands attended, including C&A, Coop Switzerland, Esprit, Inditex, H&M, M&S, Primark, PVH Corp and F&F, as well as Value Chain Affiliates Lenzing Group, BIRLA CELLULOSE, Sateri, Canopy, Textile Exchange, Bluesign and the China Chemical Fibers Association (CCFA), the Collaboration for Sustainable Development of Viscose (CV) and the Partnership for Sustainable Textiles.

The roundtable agreed that ZDHC should lead a collaboration to develop a framework of guidelines for wastewater, sludge, waste and air emissions specific to MMCF production, and expectations for process by-product recovery rates. The guidelines will, for now, focus on MMCF production. Dissolving pulp production processes will be considered at a later stage.

In April 2019, an agreement on limit values was reached to move forward with the MMCF wastewater pilot. This will give ZDHC a deeper understanding on the state of the industry and enable the translation of data into limit values, for the final draft of the guidelines.

As of July 2018 a Task Team (the MMCF Task Team) composed of the roundtable participants worked to draft the wastewater guidelines. The main aims were to:

establish parameters and limit values for a MMCF wastewater pilot
test methodologies in bi-weekly meetings using an empirical approach
compare different limit values (eg local regulations of producing countries and best available techniques) to set up parameters and limit values for this pilot.

In May 2019, the MMCF Task Team began working with the Task Team of the Output Focus Area specialised in Air Emissions. They are creating a first draft of MMCF guidelines for Air Emissions. This will generate alignment with both guidelines and accelerate progress on an MMCF guideline for Air Emissions.

Supporting data integrity on the ZDHC Gateway

These guidelines highlight the expectations, criteria and specification of data uploaded electronically onto the ZDHC Gateway.

Data integrity on ZDHC Gateway - Wastewater Module is a cornerstone of the ZDHC Roadmap to Zero Programme. One of the mechanisms used to achieve that is the implementation of the EDR. In fact, ZDHC Accepted Laboratories are expected to adhere to these guidelines.

As part of our continuous improvement efforts, we are moving away from manual data entry to electronic data submission. This guideline explains the automated system Accepted Laboratories must use to submit wastewater and sludge testing data on the ZDHC Gateway - Wastewater Module. It also helps them do so in a resource effective way.

The system is backed by a data validation mechanism, which ensures data uploaded onto the Gateway is consistent and conforms to the data rules and quality requirements.

The ZDHC Gateway Electronic Data Reporting System is currently being developed and will be rolled out in 2020 (exact time to be determined).

output

Better Outputs

Safer and cleaner - for producers, people and planet

Measuring indicators such as, wastewater, sludge and air quality validates the work that is being done with chemical inputs and processes. It helps us to determine if
the output water and air is safer.

Guidelines

Wastewater Guidelines

Version 1.1

These Guidelines standardise wastewater testing requirements in the global apparel, textile and footwear supply chain. They define the standard for wastewater discharge and sludge quality. The input of key stakeholders was used in their creation, adding to their credibility. Leading brands, suppliers, academia, laboratories and tech companies were all part of this industry breakthrough.

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supportive Document

Sampling and Analysis Plan

(SAP) Version 1.1

This document is a key support for implementing the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines. It provides ZDHC Accepted Laboratories with a set of requirements. Those requirements guide labs as they sample and test to determine the concentration of parameters in wastewater and sludge. We want to achieve the integrity and comparability of wastewater and sludge test data. The implementation of the SAP helps us to do that.

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supportive Document

Electronic Data Reporting System

(EDR) Version 2.0

The EDR gives directives to ZDHC Accepted Laboratories on submitting test data to the ZDHC Gateway - Wastewater Module. It explains the standardised way in which data should be submitted to the Gateway platform. By showing these laboratories what data we expect them to upload, it increases the consistency and comparability of test data on the platform.

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Laboratories

Accepted Laboratories

Laboratories must meet ZDHC’s minimum acceptance criteria. This is crucial to sample and analyse based on the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines, and to submit test data to the ZDHC Gateway - Wastewater Module. For consistent data quality, insight is needed on the personnel, equipment and processes being used. With that in mind, the ZDHC Laboratory Acceptance Programme was created.

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Already more than 87 laboratories in 23 locations

Materials

Fibre & Raw Materials

To account for the environmental impact of raw materials, we have expanded the scope of our work to cover fibre production. We create unified criteria for the measurement of output indicators such as wastewater, sludge and air emissions during fibre production. By assessing outputs in this way, we can verify the work done to improve inputs and processes.

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technologies

Wastewater Treatment Technologies

This document, which is purely informational, was gifted to ZDHC in 2018. It provides helpful knowledge for decision-makers and managers at wet processing facilities. The document's main purpose is to provide a technical overview of wastewater treatment processes. Wastewater treatment is a complex process and treatment solutions may vary from plant-to-plant. Therefore additional (bespoke) guidance, and resources such as regional training programs are needed.

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disclosure

Public Disclosure Portal

This portal provides a global picture of performance with regard to the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines. In this international supply chain overview, a map highlights where manufacturing facilities meet the requirements of the Wastewater Guidelines. Where requirements are not met, it shows if corrective action has been put in place.

Go to portal

Gateway

Wastewater Module

Test wastewater once - share results simultaneously

The ZDHC Gateway - Wastewater Module saves time and supports transparency throughout the value chain. Manufacturing facilities can test wastewater once and share the results simultaneously with all clients. Suppliers are assessed against uniform standards like the ZDHC Wastewater Guidelines. They can show their performance and take corrective action if needed.

Brands also benefit. They can see test results from multiple suppliers - on one single platform. There are exciting future possibilities too, like the potential to link to other business analytics platforms for fuller performance analyses.

gateway More info

Sampling & Analysis Plan

ZDHC Accepted Testing Laboratories

How Brands Benefit

How Suppliers Benefit

How Laboratories Benefit

ZDHC ClearStream

The Public Disclosure Portal

Better Outputs

Wastewater Guidelines

Sampling and Analysis Plan

Electronic Data Reporting System

Accepted Laboratories

Already more than 87 laboratories in 23 locations

Fibre & Raw Materials

Wastewater Treatment Technologies

Public Disclosure Portal

Wastewater Module