Decomposing GHG Emissions in the Textile Industry: Sectoral, Material, and
Decoupling Analysis (2019–2024)

Anvi Dua

doi:10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i09.049

Title: Decomposing GHG Emissions in the Textile Industry: Sectoral, Material, and Decoupling Analysis (2019–2024)
Authors: Anvi Dua
Journal: International Journal of Social Science and Economic Research (IJSSER) ISSN: 2455-8834 Volume: 11 Issue: 9 Publication Date: September 2026 DOI: 10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i09.049
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Anvi Dua Heritage International Xperiential School
MLA 8 Dua, Anvi. "Decomposing GHG Emissions in the Textile Industry: Sectoral, Material, and Decoupling Analysis (2019–2024)." Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Research, vol. 11, no. 9, Sept. 2026, pp. 5273-5289, doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i09.049. Accessed Sept. 2026. APA 6 Dua, A. (2026, September). Decomposing GHG Emissions in the Textile Industry: Sectoral, Material, and Decoupling Analysis (2019–2024). Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Research, 11(9), 5273-5289. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i09.049 Chicago Dua, Anvi. "Decomposing GHG Emissions in the Textile Industry: Sectoral, Material, and Decoupling Analysis (2019–2024)." Int. j. of Social Science and Economic Research 11, no. 9 (September 2026), 5273-5289. Accessed September, 2026. https://doi.org/10.46609/IJSSER.2026.v11i09.049.
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ABSTRACT: The textile sector is a significant producer of greenhouse gases (GHG) and has been increasingly under scrutiny for its environmental sustainability due to climate change and increasing resource consumption. This study aims to provide an overview of the evolution and drivers of GHG emissions in the textile sector in 2019-2024, focusing on apparel and household textiles and the level of economic–environmental decoupling. The study analyses sectoral-level information on achievements of textile production and GHG emissions in 2019-2024 and applies regression analysis to estimate the relationship between production and GHG emissions across sectors of total textiles, apparel and household textiles. Also, the patterns of decoupling and carbon intensity are examined to analyse the variation in environmental efficiency over the study period. Overall textile output grew by some 15.5% while GHG emissions grew by 17.7%, suggesting that emissions rose at a higher rate than output. Carbon intensity changed very little, rising slightly from 2.00 to 2.04, which gives some weak evidence of relative decoupling. Apparel made up about 68% of total textile emissions, and household textiles contributed about 29%. Emissions were positively and significantly correlated with production, with elasticities of 1.33 for total textiles, 1.19 for apparel, and 1.08 for household textiles, suggesting that emissions rose faster than production. The year variable was not significant, indicating that the effects of technological or policy changes were not significant independently. In general, the present research results suggest that there is no evidence of absolute decoupling, and there is only weak relative decoupling in the textile industry. This means that uptake of renewable energy, cleaner production technologies, process efficiency, and low-impact materials will be key to ensure continued growth in the textile sector is coupled with climate goals.

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