Halloween’s horrifying impact on the climate

Cheap, oil-based plastic costumes are a nightmare for more than just the environment.

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What’s in your closet?

(Mark Hulbert, an author and longtime investment columnist, is the founder of the Hulbert Financial Digest; his Hulbert Ratings audits investment newsletter returns.)

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (Callaway Climate Insights) — Halloween has become the fast fashion industry’s favorite holiday, which is why it has also become one of the worst for the climate.

Fast fashion, for those of you who aren’t its target demographic, refers to the industry that has figured out how to quickly respond (within days, believe it or not) to new fashion trends by designing, creating and marketing new clothing that is cheap enough to be worn once or twice and then thrown away.

Halloween is a huge focus of the industry, and this year an estimated 35 million Halloween costumes will eventually be dumped in landfills in the U.S. alone.