They export large amounts of wastes including household and industrial wastes, waste water and the gases linked with global warming.

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Unifi, for example, developed its own brand of yarn called REPREVE, which is made from industrial waste and clear plastic water bottles, and is used primarily by apparel manufacturers.

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The waste water is treated and just over half reused for industrial purposes, according Mohamed Al Madfaei, executive director at the Abu Dhabi Environmental Agency.

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Industrial waste, much of it toxic, litters the landscape, poisoning the soil, water and air.

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